The Life Script
by MadxHatterxTeapot
Summary: What if there was a notebook that could counteract a Death Note? What would it be like? Would the same rules apply as in the Death Note? Who's hands would it fall into? Would it be used for good or evil? Find out in this fanfiction. FINITE: Extra 10 up
1. 10 Simple Rules of The Life Script

Authoress Note: This is just a little idea I had on an opposite idea of the Death Note in general. I'm sure there are similar ideas to this kind of thing, but this is my own idea for it. Please do not steal. Thanks.

Enjoy reading.

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

--

With every Shinigami, a Death Note is bestowed to. If a Shinigami loses their Death Note in the human world, it then becomes property of the human world. A Shinigami is able to retrieve their Death Note despite this contrary fact. But if a Death Note may take life…wouldn't it be right to say that there existed a different sort of Note that gives life?

There are many Death Notes…but there is only one Life Script. In the hands of a Shinigami the Life Script can be used, only it would not be of much use considering that Shinigamis are Gods of Death. Here, is an interesting set of rules for the Life Script that can and may counteract the effects of Death Notes. The Life Script is a white notebook, with black pages (big color difference, yeah…). Any color ink or graphite in a writing utensil will immediately turn white on the Life Script's black pages. The Life Script has an infinite number of pages just like the Death Note.

1. Any deceased person who has their name written within the Life Script may be brought back to life.

2. The Life Script's ethereal power disrupts the energy used in the Death Note; therefore a Death Note may not kill the human that is brought back to life by the Life Script again.

3. The Life Script may only work on a deceased person after a certain amount of time has passed. The time limit is one week (due to decay factors and decomposition on the bodies of the deceased. Depending on the sorrow and ache within the user's heart, some cases are made in exception and a deceased person may return to life even if they are cremated or decayed beyond recognition. They shall be restored to their original selves they had been in life).

4. If a Death Note is currently being used to kill a person, the Life Script may interfere and counteract the Death Note's power. The Death Note's act of killing is immediately ceased after the targeted person's name is written within the Life Script.

5. Should the Life Script and a Death Note page come into contact with each other, the Death Note page is immediately destroyed due to the Life Script's ethereal energy levels being higher than just a single page's level (a Death Note can withstand the ethereal energy given off by The Life Script, the pages alone cannot because it is a page that has been removed from a Death Note and is on its own).

6. The Life Script can be destroyed, but upon it's destruction by the one who destroys it, the destroyer's name immediately appears in a Death Note and thus they perish in the process.

7. A Shinigami may save a human's life with the Life Script without being sacrificed, unlike the Death Note (as seen with Gelus and Rem with Misa's life)

8. The Life Script extends the life of the mortal user with or without returning it to its original place of origin (i.e: The Shinigami World and the Shinigami owner)

9: A time and date still apply when bringing one back from the death with the Life Script.

10: A Life Script may be used to save a Shinigami's life, but may result in the Life Script being destroyed in the process.

--

Authoress Note: There you guys have it. Hope you like the idea of it.

Please Read and Review. Thanks.


	2. Ryuk steals The Life Script

Authoress Note: _This is just a little idea I had on an opposite idea of the Death Note in general. I'm sure there are similar ideas to this kind of thing, but this is my own idea._

All right then guys and gals, thanks to some helpful reviews from open-minded readers, I've had a good night's sleep to ponder on new ideas for The Life Script. First of all, I'm debating on a fanfiction idea. I'm relatively new with being interested in the Death Note series, so I will get back to you guys on the fanfiction idea. For now, I'm just going to continue a Step-by-step process on how to use the Life Script and present certain scenarios in which the Life Script should be or can be used in. Otherwise this piece is dedicated to Ryuk basically stealing The Life Script just for kicks and never giving it back, like he did with Sidoh's Death Note.

Thanks to PiScEs-BlOsSoM69 and Demi-Crow Sings for reviewing. Especially to Demi-Crow Sings for her supportively critical review of my own idea for the Life Script. Much appreciation goes out to you.

Enjoy reading.

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you._

--

The Script had always been an ill-gotten piece of useless trash that had ever been created within the Shinigami World. It was only natural that the worthless grunts would just leave it lying around in one place for the longest time. The Script smelled musty and obviously was covered over in some sort of mold with shriveled apples scattered all around it. This was certainly a nice way of keeping someone's mitts off limits when an obviously stupid, if not interesting artifact was just left lying around on the dais in front of the current thief-to-be. Ryuk's jagged teeth clicked in annoyance and he glanced around to make sure the coast was clear.

Nobody really gave a damn about The Life Script, as there was only one to use. "Hmph. What idiot would be stupid enough to use it anyways?" Ryuk hummed to himself in curiosity. Creeping, spindly, gloved fingers moved forward to poke at the shriveled apple carcasses surrounding the book. Can never be _too_ careful, can you?

After another glance around, Ryuk drew closer to the dusty white notebook and stared down at it. "King of Death goes through a bunch of trouble to acquire this book and he doesn't even use it. Huh! Ridiculous. Why get it if you're just gonna let it sit and waste away? That's like throwing away a perfectly delicious red apple." There was a decent amount of dust caked onto the Script and it didn't exactly have the most pleasing smell.

Well, it didn't stink but musty smelling things usually weren't pleasant to be around. Not that Ryuk cared, he just wanted to see what would happen if he took it. If they freaked, then he'd get a good amount of entertainment out of it and then later wonder the same question he'd asked himself earlier: 'If it's such an important artifact, why leave it lying around?' He finally picked it up and wiped the dust off with a quick swish of his other hand. The elegantly written title stood out in neat cursive writing: Life Script.

"Now, let's see what's so 'powerful' about this stupid thing." The cover was opened and the 10 Simple Rules were written on the inside cover in the same writing that the title was in. "Oh…really?" His wide beady eyes scanned over the rules and found some of the rules to be some of the most ridiculous things he'd ever read. In a Death Note, there were at least more than 50 rules and Regulations regarding a Death Note, but for this there were less then 20 and some of those rules.

The rules that Ryuk had found ridiculous in general were the ones pertaining to either a Shinigami extending a human's life without dying or a human extending a Shinigami's life. "…Well, that's interesting." He said suddenly when he came down to an interesting rule. "Should one destroy the Life Script, the destroyer themselves will perish in the process. Thus their name appears in a Death Note and they die too. Ho. That's intense." Ryuk read aloud.

"I guess it's fair. I mean, this book is supposed to Give life. Not take it. It's only natural all bad souls get what's coming to them." He wondered what Light would do with The Life Script…Nah. Not a good idea. Wouldn't be as much fun, because then he'd get rid of the Life Script for sure. Light's agenda had switched up quite a bit since obtaining the black notebook a while ago. The events that they had forgone to make sure Light's identity, as Kira, remained a secret probably wouldn't last much longer.

Then he had an interesting idea. Well, it was a thought; perhaps not exactly an idea but he hadn't been getting any apples lately. So when deprived, Ryuk felt that it was only naturally to mess with Light just a bit. Giving the Life Script to a human could provide interest. Why not start with someone who's not exactly for Kira? Ryuk flipped through the empty black pages of the white notebook and found them all empty. "This could be fun. Kira, 'god of the new world', versus 'the giver of life'. I like the added drama effect." He chuckled to himself.

"This might work out after all, if I drop it in the right place, the right time, with the right person. Hopefully I'll get something out of this when it's all over. Gotta start skulking around in the human world again if this is gonna work. I'm tired of Light right now." He said to himself, flicking at his earring in contemplation. The ragged feather wings sprouted from his back and Ryuk was off back to the human world again. "This could be huge!" He cackled.

--

Authoress Note: So, did you enjoy that? Hope so. Maybe I'll go somewhere with this. Maybe I won't. It's all up to you reviewers.


	3. You can call me Ryuk

Authoress Note: _This is just a little idea I had on an opposite idea of the Death Note in general. I'm sure there are similar ideas to this kind of thing, but this is my own idea._

All right, so I decided to go with a fan fiction idea. Sue me. I couldn't resist. Ohhh.. Forgive me, this is my first attempt at a Death Note fanfiction, so I apologize if it seems major suckage.

Enjoy reading.

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps), belong to me. Thanks_

--

The glowing screen of the computer was frustrating to stare at. Ever since this whole 'Kira' serial killer had appeared, it had thrown the whole world in a state of panic. _'I haven't seen America this scared since the 9/11 attacks.'_ God may those souls of ground Zero rest in peace. She pondered to herself while trying to work on three research papers with the spare time she had right now. The criminals at the state penitentiary were not holding up will.

Some went in okay, she supposed, but others that were there for more serious crimes didn't come out or their faces and names appeared on the news quite frequently. It didn't matter when or how Kira struck, it was just the fact that he did strike that frightened everybody. Everyone was scared…except her. For some odd reason, death didn't strike her as much as it used to any more. Maybe because at a young age she'd watched her parents die in a car crash, then her grandmother, and afterwards it just didn't matter anymore because she was used to it.

Going to funerals felt like an annual ritual. Whether it was someone she was acquainted with or her next-door neighbor, death just seemed to be everywhere. The cursor on the screen scrolled the Internet page down and up until it rested on another article that had another 'Kira' incident in it. Her brows furrowed together and she bit the pencil between her cool dry lips in annoyance. Just what was so special about this guy magically being able to kill people just like that?

It wasn't that great, it was just coincidental the guy happened to have that ability. It just always seemed that way to her, every action had a motive, every thought controls an action, and every action can be counteracted or result in an equal or opposite reaction. If she got on the exchange student program at college she could go to Japan for herself and see what this whole 'Kira' incident was all about. The young woman sitting at her computer desk imagined that the Japanese people were more frightened than the Americans because all that they knew was that Kira originated somewhere in Japan and was still residing there.

She stared at the photos of the recently deceased criminals long and hard and read over the article of what they were in jail for and how the warden or the officers within the jail were fumbling over their words in the video clip of the interview. Keegan Allison Phelps chewed on her pencil more intensely. "Oh, please! He's not gonna come after you. You're a man of the law." She muttered to the image of the officer on guard duty that obviously would not be able to answer her. "I wish somebody would be able to teach Kira a lesson. Not about Death, but messing with life in general."

The young woman sitting at the computer desk was a college student entering her Junior year at Chestnut Hill College in Philadelphia. In all honesty, it was about 1:00 a.m in the morning and she just felt like staying up to do her research papers. Unfortunately, she'd been distracted due to looking up recent news reports to use for references on certain issues. All she found though was 'Kira this' or 'Kira that'. "When will Kira strike again?" She mumbled in aggravation. "He's ruining my internet sources. All I hear about is the damn guy. Somebody oughta off him if anything."

Taking the pencil she'd been chewing on earlier, she began to twirl it through a lock of frizzy red hair before finally putting the pencil down and getting up from the spinning leather chair. All was quiet in the household, except the snores from her Aunt Carol as she slept in the room down the hall. Damn, that woman sounded like a bear, bless her kind heart. Creeping down the stairs, Keegan stopped in front of the mirror by the hall bathroom to fix the buttons on her cloudy blue pajama shirt and the tie on her pajama bottoms. It was just out of OCD she did it because if she left it alone she had this unnerving worry that she'd be running around the house in her underwear.

"Time for a snack." She grumbled, opening the refrigerator door and pulling out a packet of Mott's pre-packaged apple slices (the granny smith apple kind) and a pre-packaged little cup of dipping caramel before sitting it down on the kitchen table and opening the pack of apple slices. She pulled the lid up on the dipping cup and went to town on the caramel as soon as the apple slice touched it. Keegan munched on it quietly while still pondering on how she was going to work on her research papers with Kira being all over the news and such. "This is gonna be tricky."

--

It hadn't taken much to tell Light that Ryuk was simply going to wander off on his own for a bit and leave Light to his own devices as usual. All Ryuk was asked is just where he was going and he was gone just like that after Light shrugged and let him do as he pleased. Success, his little idea was in motion and The Life Script hadn't been lost…yet. Ryuk had crouched on top of a metal trashcan and held the white notebook up to the moonlight where the silvery cursive title glowed from the moon's reflection. "Hey, from this angle it looks kind of pretty." He said for no reason to himself.

There was an unusual clatter from behind the dumpster adjacent from the trashcan in the alleyway before he watched two alley cats duke it out over territory. A mangy, one-eyed, black cat with a snaggle tooth hissed and bit at his opponent, an orange tabby tomcat that was much fatter than the black one. In the end, the bigger cat fled because of the black cat's ferocity and determination to keep this alley. Afterwards, all Ryuk heard was the black cat hissing at him because he was sitting on the trashcan the cat had deemed 'his'. Ryuk glanced at the feline with apathy before he hissed at it in return. The cat's tail brushed out and it scurried back to the dumpster.

"Sheesh." He grunted, returning his attention back to The Life Script before the cat was back again, glaring at him with that one glowing yellow eye that stood out in the dark like a bull's-eye. "Whaaaaat?" He whined to the creature. "I'm going anyways, so can't you just stay the hell away or what?"

The cat hissed, pawing at thin air before a light flipped on a window behind Ryuk's head and he jumped because he hadn't even noticed there was a window there it was so dark.

--

The commotion outside had interrupted Keegan from her snacking on the apple slices and she had decided to open the kitchen window from the row house and see what the fuss was all about. The only sounds she had heard was her mangy cat fighting but after the fight was over he must have been quite adamant about getting inside that he was now hissing at her to open the window. She frowned when she saw Lucil, her one-eyed cat, looking up at her and meowing cutely at her. "Ugh. I thought you wanted to stay out? Now you want in? Make up your mind." The girl complained, crunching on her apple slice in annoyance before the cat leapt up onto the fire escape to get inside.

"You better now have gotten rabies from that fat old tabby cat you've been wrestling for the past couple weeks. I know the neighbors don't take him to get checkups." She closed the window and turned the light off to sit in the dark with her apple pack and caramel sauce.

Lucil was curling around her leg and purring by now. He was happy to see her it seemed, usually he was devoid of emotion when she petted him. She sighed. "If this is only because you want food I'm never petting you again." The cat meowed at her and Keegan shook her head. "Sorry, but no midnight snacks for you. You're lazy enough as it is."

--

Just as soon as that window opened, Ryuk lost it at the scent of the apples. "Ohhhhh….Damn." He grumbled. "Gotta have one. I don't care what kind, I just gotta have one now!" Ryuk bashed his head on the brick wall the window was connected to. "Maybe…Yeah. It couldn't hurt. Human's half asleep probably. She'll think he's dreaming if I steal that apple." Ryuk fumbled with the Life Script before putting it away and easily went through the window to find himself in an American household, in the kitchen.

"Apple, apple, apple. Where's the apple?" He was talking aloud before finally spotting the small packet on the table next to some gross looking brown sauce the human was dipping the slices in. "Yeeuck." Ryuk shook his head in disgust. Who does that with apples? It was best to take the package now while she was focused on that mangy cat that had been hissing at him only moments before from outside. His hand reached out to pinch over the plastic of the little pack and it slowly began moving across the table. Thank goodness humans couldn't see him unless they touched the Death Note.

Just as soon as Keegan's hand reached for the bag again, it wasn't where it was supposed to be, and Lucil was hissing at Ryuk again while the packet moved across the table. Keegan swallowed and immediately slapped her hand over packet.

"Errk." Ryuk hissed between his jagged teeth. "Damn it, let go."

Ryuk's hand was there coincidentally, though she couldn't see it. "Now? Serious? In the middle of the night? Can't you poltergeist just let me enjoy my healthy snack in peace?" Not knowing that Ryuk was really trying to take her apples, Keegan just assumed her house was haunted from time to time when weird things happened in it.

Was she talking to him? Impossible! This human girl couldn't see him, which could only happen if she had touched a Death note. Or…Shit! Ryuk watched as the Life Script suddenly flopped onto the table accidentally from the folds of his fur-lined jacket and lay sprawled in the middle of the wooden table where Keegan's gaze left the packet of apple slices and fell on The Life Script. "Okay, I get it. You wanna make a trade. That's fine. You give me a fancy notebook for my apples. Yeah, mmhmm. I see how it is."

"Uh…sure. Why not?" Ryuk said, not that she could hear him. "It's yours, knock yourself out. I just want the apples."

Even though she couldn't hear Ryuk, Keegan reluctantly relinquished the Mott's apple slices and picked up the notebook. "Fine. Thanks, I guess."

The packet immediately slid off the table and floated in mid-air before finally revealing the 'poltergeist' at hand after she had touched The Life Script. Ryuk began devouring the apple slices one by one before Keegan turned to the obnoxious eater and stared at him with the Life Script in her hands. Lucil was still hissing at him. What she saw was an unearthly looking creature that looked like it was half starved and quite frankly on acid or something by the way it appeared. It, he, she.

Whatever this thing was, Keegan knew that must have been what her cat was making a commotion about outside after the fight with the other cat. After Ryuk had finished off the pack of apples, he found his attention span had returned and The Life Script was in the human's hands…and she was staring right at him. "…Oh, yeah…Uh…boo?" He said, stretching his fingers out and moving them like he was some kind of ghost at her.

"Boo? Oh, that's original." She scoffed. "So, Mr. Poltergeist. You like apples huh?" Keegan asked, referring to the empty plastic package on the floor of her kitchen.

This was a bit strange, he found that she wasn't running away in terror or quivering like Light had when they had first met, this human…something was different or wrong with her. "Hm? Oh. Yeah. Call it my personal drug."

"Apples? A drug? So, they're like your crack basically?" Keegan asked, still holding the Life script. "Nice notebook you gave me by the way."

Ryuk was suddenly hit with the fact he'd dropped The Life Script. "Damn. I have an uncanny ability of dropping and losing notebooks a lot." He grumbled. "I didn't mean to give it to you." He insisted.

Keegan's brow cocked. "Oh? Really? Well, you traded it for the apples."

"You don't get it, I didn't mean to. You couldn't have heard what I was saying. You wouldn't be able to see me without touching that notebook." The Shinigami had to explained. "It was an accident really. I just dropped it."

"Ohhhh. I see. Well, I suppose the right thing would be to give it back. I normally would, but you technically traded it for my apples whether you wished to or not." Keegan restated from before. "So, I get to keep it. Unless you really want it back." Her gaze scanned over the title of the notebook. "Life Script? Never scene a brand of notebook like that before. Where'd you get it?" She asked, opening it up and flipping through the black pages. "They're all blank."

"Yeah, well, take a look at the rules to that little notebook. Bet you'll get a kick out of that." Ryuk chuckled, flipping over to be standing on her kitchen table. "You Americans are certainly different from the Japanese."

"Yeah? Where are you from pal?" She asked, turning to the inside cover of The Life Script.

"The Shinigami Realm." Ryuk answered casually, peering over her shoulder in an annoying manner as she examined the notebook. "So, seem curious about the book huh? I can tell you about it, if you want."

"So, you're a Shinigami? Japan right?" Keegan asked. "And I can read, thanks though." She turned to the 10 rules in the book and skimmed over them. "Magic notebook? Reminds me of Harry Potter." She chuckled. "Ever seen it?"

"You humans are weird." Ryuk commented. "Never seen it and don't really know what it is."

"Then you wouldn't understand the concept of Witches, wizards, warlocks, or J.K Rowling." She shook her head. "Magic Notebook…huh?"

"We prefer to call it The Life Script. There's only one…and you got it in your little hands right there." Ryuk pointed at it with a leer.

"Ah. And…how come I couldn't see you before?"

"Because you hadn't touched the notebook." He answered quite simply. "It's the same way with a Death Note."

Now he had her interested. "Life Script…Death Note?" There was a pause before Keegan suddenly grinned with an idea on her mind. "What's you're name?"

"You can call me Ryuk." The Shinigami grinned, with a gleaming Cheshire-like smile.

--

Authoress Note: Well, that was certainly an interesting encounter. Hope you liked it. Please Read and Review. Let me know if I should make another chapter or not?


	4. I fear I may have said too much

Authoress Note: Wow! I hadn't expected to get a review this week on Chapter 2. Lucky me. Haha, Well, I'm certainly grateful for it. So, I'd like to extend my special thanks to Syrupdrip for her interesting questions, ideas, and helpful review to further my continuation on this fanfiction. Much thanks to you. I hope that other reviewers will extend the same courtesy. Don't be afraid to ask questions folks! I will not eat your soul!

Anyways, aha. Enjoy Chapter 4.

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps), belong to me. Thanks_

--

"Ryuk, huh?" Keegan said turning to face the shinigami crouched on her table. "Well Ryuk, it's nice to meet you. I'm Keegan." She held out her hand for him to shake, but Ryuk didn't return the gesture.

"Pleasure, I suppose. Got anymore of those apples. I've been deprived of them for a while." Ryuk's head was turning this was and that in search of the delicious treat in sight.

"Yeah, there's some in the fridge. Here." She put the notebook down and opened the refrigerator to get a few more of the Mott's ready-to-eat packs and opened them all for him. "Sorry if they're not a whole apple, but they're pretty good huh."

"These are the sweet and sour kind. I prefer the red juicy ones better though." Ryuk proclaimed as he attacked the little packets immediately. Munching obnoxiously while Keegan read the rules thoroughly. "Well, Ryuk. You certainly don't have any table manners. Didn't anybody ever teach you to chew with your mouth closed?" Keegan's brow twitched in disgust. "Seriously, you'll make a mess on my floor and I'll have to clean it up."

Ryuk chomped on the apple slices ravenously before Keegan scolded him for eating like a wild animal. "Hey, I'm not human. I don't need to act like one."

"Well, I'd really appreciate it if you could. Please." Keegan said politely, before going back to reading the rules. "So, I get the concept of this Life Script, but what about that Death Note you were talking about earlier?" She asked, looking up at him.

"Hm? Oh. Well, The Life Script is a book of life, so what does a Death Note sound like to you?" He asked. Hoping she'd get the obvious fact in the notebook title.

"A book of death…so how do both of these books work exactly?" She asked. It was about 2:00 a.m. now. Keegan had been conversing with this God of Death for about a good hour now. "You know, as a God of Death I really shouldn't have accepted this as a trade from you. I mean, I don't know where this notebook has been, I don't know if you're lying or telling the truth, or if you're just trying to stall me so it give you more time to think of ways of how I'm supposed to die."

Keegan had pulled the chair out she had been sitting in before and was once again seated in it with The Life Script in her hands. "So, fess up. What exactly are you doing in America if you're all the way from Japan?"

"Escaping another atomic bomb…What do you think?" Ryuk said, cracking his neck and speaking sarcastically, most of the apple packets were empty by now and he was staring at them like he had lost something precious. "About how many of those would you say you've got, girl?"

Keegan looked up from the notebook again with her brow cocked. "You didn't answer my question. So, if you want more you'll have to be more cooperative than that. Tell me about that Death Note you were talking about a few minutes ago." She ordered. "I don't mean to treat you like a dog or some kind of menial servant, but I'm really not as stupid as you might think."

"So you got a brain, big deal." Ryuk shrugged. "You're a little smarter than most humans. Fine. I'll give you credit for that. What makes you think I should tell you about the Death Note?"

Keegan pointed to the empty apple packs. "Because, if you don't I'm not giving you any more of those." Here she was presenting a bribe technique.

"Hmm…" He said, scratching the underside of his chin while contemplating her offer. "Eh. All right, all right. All right. Apples first though. I'll follow through afterwards."

"Not so fast, information first. Then apples." She insisted.

So at this point, he seemed pretty perturbed and had dug his fingers into the table, crouching in front of her and gritting his sharp, jagged, teeth. "So, you wanna know about the Death Note, fine. I'll tell you. It's exactly what it is. A book of Death. It's got about 55 rules pertaining to it and basically I'm just gonna give you the short version if that helps."

Keegan nodded as though this small amount of information would suffice. "Very well…proceed." She said, getting up from the chair to retrieve a whole apple from the refrigerator this time. "Don't ask why I have an insane amount of fruit in the house, my Aunt likes to make sure I eat healthy." She tossed it to him and he easily caught it.

"Ooohhhh. A whole one, that's even better." He cackled, biting into the tasty red fruit immediately. "Long story short, You wanna kill someone with this book, you can. All you have to do is write the name of the person you wanna kill while knowing their face, who they are, specifying how they die, and the time of death. If you don't specify how they die it'll just be an immediate heart attack. Yadda, yadda, yadda."

"Well, that's certainly an interesting little notebook you just talked about. Heh. Now tell me about the Life Script."

Ryuk had been happily finishing the rest of the apple before he choked back on the core and swallowed hard. "Gah! Seriously? Jeez! You wanna know everything!"

"Detail counts." Keegan giggled. "Besides, poking Death with a stick is rather entertaining."

"I'd be careful if I were you. I can easily use a Death Note to kill you."

There was a brief silence before Keegan glanced at him. "All right, fine. You can just give me the short version of the Life Script."

"Opposite of the Death Note, with less rules. There, happy?" Ryuk snarled. His hands looked rather like talons at the angle they were digging into the table. He was literally clawing at it because Keegan was pestering him with questions about each notebook.

"Calm down, you got your apple didn't you? I might as well give you another one if you're gonna be pissy about it." She grumbled. Again, same path from the table to the fridge, Keegan gave him another apple. "Don't eat my aunt out of house and home. She'll think I'm a bulimic because of your apple binge."

"Gimme a break, I get really bad withdrawl symptoms."

--

Around 4:00 a.m. Keegan was tired to talking with him. For a while, Ryuk had decided to be annoying and harass her cat by floating upside down when he pleased and hissing back at Lucil, clawing at him from the table. "Meeeowrrrrrr! Nyeorwrrrrrr…."

The cat hissed nastily in return, pawing at the air.

"I'm gonna have ask you get out if you don't leave my cat alone. I know animals have that sixth sense, but come on. Now you're just being mean." The human girl informed, picking Lucil up and taking him into the living room. Ryuk had unfortunately followed, like an obnoxious little kid wanting attention. "Look, do you sleep or what? Because I've gotten nowhere with any of my research papers, I've been up for 3 hours talking with you, and I'm quite frankly tired and would love to sleep til at least noon preferably. So if you don't mind-"

"No. My body doesn't require necessary human functions like you." Ryuk was poking at poor Lucil on the couch now as the black cat brushed his tail out, prompting Keegan to take him back into her arms again to 'protect' him from any more taunts. "Aww…come on. The little guy was so close to leaping at me."

"Yeah, and if he bites you on your ass or your face, I'm gonna pee myself with laughter." Keegan warned. "I'm not even gonna get him off because then you'll have learned your lesson."

"Yeah, yeah. You humans are all talk."

"Oh really? You have room to open your big fat mouth? Mister Death God? All right, you said you could easily kill me with a Death Note. Let's see you try it." Keegan taunted

"I would…If I could find a Death Note around in America somewhere." Ryuk scratched the back of his head in embarrassed defeat. "And as a personal law I'm not allowed of use my bare hands to kill you."

"They have laws in The Shinigami Realm?" Keegan asked, walking up the stairs with the cat growling in her arms.

"Heeyyyyy….Come on. I haven't interesting conversation in forever. Besides, that Kira guy, you're probably the only logical individual to make conversation with."

"Conversation…hardly. You're just sticking around to pester me until I give the Life Script-Wait. You know that Kira serial killer?" Keegan halted on the stairs and spun on her heels to face Ryuk, dropped Lucil and listened to the cat scurry off down the hallway towards her Aunt Carol's room.

Ryuk hung upside down from the ceiling in front of her with a dark chuckle. "I fear I may have said too much, heheheheh…"

--

Authoress Note: I hope you all enjoyed the cliffhanger I left behind. Some of you I will guess not, but then again I think that it's best to leave it that way. This chapter is all ready about 7 pages long. Lol. Anyways, Read and Review. Thanks very much.


	5. Kuro

Authoress Note: Wow! Two reviews! That's fan-diddly-tastic! Thanks so much guys! You've made my day, I'm all excited now. I'd like to give thanks to Syrupdrip again for reading my story. Much obliged! Also, big props to Sharnii Brooke.

I'm glad to see that my fanfiction ish prospering. You make me happeh. (dances a little jig).

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps), belong to me. Thanks_

_--_

"Don't give me that, you know. Don't you?" Keegan asked, her gaze had become serious before she held up The Life Script to him. "You want this back?"

Ryuk shrugged. "I could care less about getting it back. I mean, it's not really that important in the Shinigami Realm apparently. They just left it lying around. My assumption is that it would be better taken care of by a human than anybody else. Then again, I hadn't counted on dropping it. So I have to assume that now, don't it?"

Her face grew hot once Ryuk told her that he had deliberately taken this object without asking about it first. For one thing, Keegan had a standing moral code in her that made her feel guilty and determined to return said object.

"Then it's not yours? This doesn't belong to you? You stole this from your own kind?" Keegan asked, waving it in his face, sounding displeased. "That's stealing."

"Hey! Look, if you don't want it, all you gotta do is hand it back to me and we can be done with this little game we're playing here. Make your choice all ready kid, because your pissing me off." Ryuk slapped a hand to his forehead. "Though I appreciated the apples. It should hold me up for a while."

Keegan held the Life Script to her protectively after he had suggested she give it back to him. "Tell me Ryuk…do you know Kira?"

"What makes you think I'll tell you?" He asked, dropping down from the ceiling to stand in front of her. His eyed suddenly were glowing in the dark at her from the stairwell and Keegan wondered what he was trying to do. Ryuk was reading her life span. "Well…that's interesting." This was rather strange. She had a good long life span ahead of her. That was unusual to find in some humans, but hers was abnormal. It had been extended. The Life Script must have had something to do with it.

"What?" Keegan asked, perking up.

"Huh? Oh. Nothing. I just read your life span. You don't got anything to worry about." Ryuk insisted. "Really."

"Does that come natural? Reading how long a person has to live?" She asked.

What business did she have asking him about that anyways? He told her she was going to live a long life, so it should have made her yawn, nod her head, and go to sleep all ready. "Why does it matter to you?"

"I was just curious. Besides, I can bombard you with more questions tomorrow. Right?" She had her back turned to him as she proceeded to go back to her room. "You can hang out wherever you like in the house. Just not in my Aunt's room. She's a highly Catholic woman and she'll call a priest here at any time to exorcise the house."

"Like a Holy Man's gonna get rid of me. I'm not causing any problems." Ryuk huffed, crossing his arms in front of him in frustration. "What do you think I am? A little kid or something?"

He didn't get an answer to his childish question, because Keegan's door closed on him and he was left crouched outside of it. "I can pass right though solid objects you know…right?" He stuck his head through the door only to receive a pillow to the face. "Agh!"

"Hey! I'm changing here, stay out pervert!" Keegan snarled.

--

Around noon, Keegan had a hard time getting out of bed when her aunt knocked on the door to make sure she hadn't died in her sleep. Her head lifted up from her pillow in reluctance, and sure enough, sitting, crouched in her computer chair; Ryuk was there, waving like a smart alleck at her. "Mornin' sunshine."

"I…am going to beat you with that notebook if you don't leave me alone." Keegan growled from underneath the covers. She regretted staying up and chatting with that son of a bitch all night and then having to wake up feeling like utter crap. "You're so lucky I don't have class today or I would have all ready gotten out of this bed and hit you with it sooner."

Ryuk cocked his head to the side. "Hey, you humans have free will. So you chose to stay up half the night. Don't look at me like it's my fault." He taunted, so vivaciously if one might add.

Keegan sat up from her bed and rubbed her temples. "Out. I need to get dressed."

"What? Aw, come on." Ryuk whined. "No fair. Can't I stay? You said I could hang out anywhere in the house."

"Absolutely not!" Keegan snarled, stomping towards him with a rather scary gleam to her green eyes. "Get out!" She snapped.

Ryuk topped out of the leather chair, landing flat on his bum and stared up at her with defiance. "No. You can't tell me what to do."

"Apples. You want 'em? You'll get out." Keegan warned dangerously, pointing at the door.

He looked back and forth between her and the door before grumbling. "Argh." His weakness was too easily shown and he had to do something to curb his crave for apples, but it really was a pointless effort since he loved them so much. Eventually, Ryuk transparently passed through the door and let her be.

After a good couple minutes, Keegan emerged from her bedroom in a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt, only to find Ryuk taunting her cat again. This was getting to be rather annoying before she shooed the cat off and Ryuk was left without entertainment once more. "Are you just gonna be a pain in the ass all day or what?!"

"No. Now stop talking to me. I have to make sure I eat my breakfast before my aunt leaves for work."

--

"You were up awful late last night Keegan, I thought you'd never go to sleep. Talking again with that pen pal of yours in California on the phone all night? Dear, I'm sure Mia has to sleep too." Aunt Carol said with concern.

Keegan was pouring syrup on her waffles that she'd toasted from the freezer. "Hm? Oh. Yeah, sorry. It's just, she just had some ranting to do and I'm usually the best person to talk to for rants." She explained. "So, yeah. Just some troubles and stuff with her friends. No big deal."

"Well, all right. But I don't want you staying up that late again. Sleeping so late messes up your sleep schedule." Her aunt informed.

"I'm well aware, but thanks." Keegan nodded, her mouth filled with the sweet sticky taste of syrup and waffle. "Mmm."

"Gross." Ryuk said with disgust as he watched Keegan eat. "I can't believe you actually eat that stuff. I don't know which I'm more repulsed by, you eating that or you eating those apples with that brown sauce last night." He was crouched on the table again. Keegan was lucky he decided not to step on her waffles or she'd be telling crazy stories about a ghost in her house.

"You know, Keegan. It's funny. I came downstairs this morning and found some weird scratches on the table. I hope Lucil hasn't been taking to the table as his scratching post because those marks were awful deep."

"I think Lucil's been doing that for a while. I saw him fighting with the neighbor's cat last night before I let him in. I swear, we're gonna have to get him checked regularly to make sure he doesn't catch rabies." She insisted, watching as her cat peered out from the hallway bathroom. His fur stood on ends when he saw Ryuk on the table again. "Meowrrrr…"

"What's he fussing about?" Aunt Carol asked, turning to stare at the cat across the room.

"He sees ghosts." Keegan shrugged. "I'm guessing there's one on the table."

"Why'd ya have to go tell that bitter old hag about me?!" Ryuk snarled, rather irritated that Keegan would even bring his presence up in the room.

"Well, this house is old. It was built in the forties and they did say the previous owner died in it when I bought it." Aunt Carol informed.

"Who knows, maybe it's 'Casper, the friendly ghost'." Keegan mocked. "Hello friends! I'm Casper!"

"You keep that up and I'm gonna make you regret those words." Ryuk warned.

"Whooooo…." Keegan said, finishing off her waffles before cleaning up her mess around the table and doing the dishes in the sink.

"Well I've got to run. Don't work on your school stuff too hard Keegan. Bye." She waved goodbye to her niece before going.

When her Aunt was gone, Keegan went to the fridge and pulled out another apple before throwing it at Ryuk. "Here. Now shut up." She sneered.

Ryuk lunged for the apple, and caught it before it hit the floor. "Don't waste it you moron!" He complained, chomping right into it.

"Now…" Keegan said, reaching underneath her sweater and pulling out The Life Script. "Who is this Kira?"

Ryuk had to stop chewing on the apple long enough to look at Keegan after she asked her question. "Damn. I knew that apple wasn't for nothing." He lay across the table while continuing to eat the apple. "All right, all right. I'll tell you. But you gotta make some sort of bargain in order to get me to cough up information. Why do you wanna know who Kira is so badly, Keegan? Aren't you afraid he could kill you just like that?"

"You seem to have knowledge of how he kills, Ryuk…What's his secret? Is he using a Death Note?" Keegan asked.

"Sharp, aren't ya?" He chuckled, his mouth spewing apple crumbs. He ate the core when he was finished before doing a back flip to upright himself on the table. "You hit the nail on the head there."

Keegan's eyes glinted with intuition before she went back to the fridge and pulled out several more whole apples. She was running out and would need to go to the store for more soon. The apple packs wouldn't cut it and she highly doubted that Ryuk liked clementines. "Tell me more." She ordered, pushing the small group of red apples forward. This was turning out to be an interesting interrogation.

Ryuk twitched at the sight of the five whole apples sitting on the table in front of him. "Heh. You play dirty. I don't know if you're worse than most humans or the smartest one I've met. But I like the way you think when it comes to how much I'm being given in return for this."

"Let's just say I'm glad I'm not having to pay you money. Not that you'd be able to use it where you come from." Keegan slammed The Life Script down in front of him. "_Who is Kira?_" She demanded.

As Ryuk began on the next apple he started to be more cooperative. "Well, I'm not exactly on Kira's side. So I can tell you. And since Kira doesn't know who you are, you've got nothing to worry about.'

"Right. So tell me."

"Kira, is a pseudonym used by a youth in Japan known as Light Yagami. He's part of the Task Force, which is a detective or investigation unit with police activity, is basically playing a hypocrite in trying to track down 'Kira' (himself) while putting on this whole 'I'm not Kira' persona." Ryuk answered.

"So, Mr. Yagami is about…how old, would you say?"

"Early twenties. Not over 25 though." Ryuk informed with his mouth full. He counted how many apples were left on the table. "You're running low on apples. Choose your next questions carefully."

"He goes after criminals and people who come close to finding out who he is. If I can get to Japan, I can stop him with the Life Script. The Life Script can intercept what the Death Note does if he's trying to kill someone the exact same time I write that person's name in the Life Script. Therefore his killing attempt is null and void in the Death Note if I use the Life Script, correct? And if so, Mr. Yagami will not suspect anything about there being The Life Script. Right?"

"Ooh…Clever. You're right there; you spent time reading those rules over carefully last night. I saw you." Ryuk teased. "You can't fool me with that fake sleeping technique. I saw the little flashlight under the covers." He was down to the last apple. "One more and it's no more questions about Kira for today."

Keegan had to think wisely on what to ask. How was she going to give Kira, Mr. Yagami, a taste of his own medicine. She couldn't get to Japan and it would be safer if she stayed here in America where he wouldn't know who she was. If he didn't know her name or her face, she'd be safe. Keegan opened the Life Script and looked at the black pages with the silvery lines separating each little section. "You recently saw Mr. Yagami…didn't you Ryuk? And if so…that means you'll have to return to him shortly and then come back here for more apples." That was it. Keegan had culminated a plan. It was spur of the moment plan, but she thought it would be a good idea.

"Riiiiiight." Ryuk stated, halfway through the apple. "Your point being?"

"I just had a thought. If not a plan." Keegan stated, showing the Life Script to him once more. "I can stop his killings with this. I can play a game with him. A guessing game, like a wild goose chase."

"Oh?" Ryuk stopped eating the apple when he got to the core. "Go on…" He was now sitting, patiently waiting to hear this. Things were getting edgy.

"Kira…technically means 'Light' in Japanese. Which is stupid, considering the fact the Task Force has yet to see what's in front of them with Mr. Yagami. So…if Kira means 'Light'…Then 'Kuro' could be someone to propose a challenge to 'Kira'." She grinned to herself while looking at the black pages of the Life Script.

"Kuro vs. Kira?" Ryuk cocked his head to the side with heavy interest now. "All right. I see where you're going with this."

"I need your help though." Keegan said, looking up at Ryuk with a small frown. It was an unwise choice, trusting Ryuk because if he wasn't on Mr. Yagami's side, then he sure as hell wouldn't be on her side

"If I die…because of Mr. Yagami," She pulled one more apple out of the fridge and Ryuk gulped at the site of it. "I assume he doesn't supply your cravings well. So, if I die. You don't get any apples. Judging by how much of them I give you…you need them badly. Otherwise bad things might happen with you if you don't. That's what it seems like. So, you keep my identity a secret, and I'll make sure you never go without apples again. You have to go back and forth between us now. Unfortunately, it's kind of like a messenger boy project. You tell me who he's going to kill and when and I can stop him. If you don't cooperate, no apples."

Damn. Damn. Damn. Damn. DAMN! Ryuk began to grind his sharp teeth together. "You're too smart for your own good." He growled. "You've mastered the art of bribery, that's for sure. Perhaps even better than Light." He swallowed the core.

"When they catch Mr. Yagami…I will give you directions and access to the biggest, vastest, and best apple orchard in this country. So that you will be set for the rest of your existence. But until then, I can make any kind of apple dish you want."

"Huh?" Ryuk perked up. "Apple dishes?" He scooted closer to her. "There's apple dishes? What kind of apple dishes?" He asked.

"Apple pie, apple sauce, apple cider, apple butter, apple dumplings…Shall I continue?" Keegan asked, torturing him with promises of sweet treats.

Ryuk was twitching and contorting his body in delight of the thought of so many ways to eat apples. "Oooooohhh! Stop, stop, stop! All right! You've got a deal! I'm on your side, I'm on your side. Just give me that apple you got in your hand and it's a deal!" He squirmed with need.

"Deal." Keegan said, tossing him the apple. "Thus, Kuro…is born."

--

Authoress Note: Yeah, I know, Kuro. But this time, Kuro won't be so obvious to figure out as with Kira. Lol I hope you enjoyed this little Mafia-style deal portrayed between Shinigami and Human. Thanks. Read and Review.


	6. A Little Miracle

Authoress Note: I would like to extend my thanks to PiScEs-BlOsSoM69, Syrupdrip, and Sharnii Brooke for reviewing again. I'm fortunate to have such reviewers like you. I appreciate you giving my story a real chance and not letting it sit and rot in the dirt. (throws confetti) Whee! Thanks so much!

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps), belong to me. Thanks_

--

For the rest of the afternoon, Keegan was stuck emailing her Journalism professor about choosing a different topic for her research paper. Due to the current topic at hand being overwhelmed by the news reports of Kira all over the Internet, she had to change the topic she was working on. Her teacher understood the dilemma at hand and Keegan was allowed to change her topic. Ryuk was snooping around her room, excluding the drawers by her nightstand. That was off limits because her lingerie resided in there.

He was making a mess, putting everything out of place just to annoy her and he was going through her little Hello Kitty makeup bag. "What's in the pencil case? Ooh…let's see, mascara, eyeliner, eye shadow, and lip-gloss. Keegan, you have a boyfriend?" He was poking the grizzly bear with a rather pointy stick about now.

"No. I'm not in any relationship right now. I mean. I've had a boyfriend before. But we broke up on mutual terms." Keegan explained. "I don't feel uncomfortable talking about him because he was a really nice guy and he's obviously well off. So it's no big deal." She was scrolling through various websites on previous news reports on salmonella outbreaks and what possible causes could be. Keegan also brought up when the FDA was first introduced in her research paper.

"Why'd you break up with him if he was a good guy?" Ryuk asked, putting the make-up bag down and picking up a framed photo of Keegan as a little girl with her mom and dad. "These your parents?"

"Yes, and my ex-boyfriend was moving out of the country on a scholarship to a university in Ireland. I get emails from him from time to time but we're not getting back together if that's what you're wondering. I mean, I'd like to. But Joe's got more to worry about than me. He's working on architecting and I'm studying journalism, English major, and foreign languages." Keegan explained, waving the rest of the topic off dismissively.

Ryuk was turning the framed image this way and that as he tried to find the similarities between Keegan and her parents. She looked more like her father than anything. "What happened to them?" He asked curiously. "Why aren't you living with them if you're going to school?" His head turned to look at her, Ryuk was trying to read her life span again while she wasn't holding the Life Script. It was still the same as he had read it last night.

Keegan stopped typing on her keyboard before spinning her chair to in the direction that Ryuk was in. "Hm?"

"What happened to the rest of your family? Estranged? Big Divorce? Murdered?"

She shrugged. "Car crash. I was 9. We were on our way home just from the grocery store. A road rage driver decided it was fun to sideswipe the vehicle on our right coming from a different intersection and broadsided the car. My mom died instantly. My dad wasn't so lucky."

"Little bizarre that you're not getting all emotional about it." Ryuk said skeptically, putting the photo down. "Why no tears? Most humans would be bawling their eyes out at the thought of it." He snorted. "What's the scoop? Apathetic about it?"

"Road rage incidents happen a lot in America. I don't know if it's the same way anywhere else or in Japan, but I believe it happens more in America than anywhere else. Otherwise, I guess the thought of death or people dying around me doesn't bother me. At least people I know that die, but when it comes to someone deliberately killing people because they think it's for the good of the world…it makes me sick." She stared at the Life Script. "I can stop death with this book. I can make the pain of others go away."

Ryuk floated aimlessly beside her. "Can you?"

"Not truly, I mean…everyone has to die at some point. This book doesn't cause immortality."

"You're right there. What's funny amongst us shinigami is that we don't even know why the Life Script was made. If anything it must have been important at the time." Ryuk poked at the notebook in Keegan's hand. "I mean, we shinigami can use it, but I bet none of us would. We're death gods not 'life' gods."

Keegan nodded in understanding. "That's true. I see the logic there. I can't stop death entirely, but I can restore life. I can halt the effects of death that are occurring. Almost like when Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead." She was pondering aloud. "I guess I'll have to test this notebook out and see how it really works. Where's the best place I can try it out Ryuk?" She looked over at the Shinigami as he was rooting through her closet.

Ryuk wasn't even paying attention anymore once Keegan had mentioned Jesus, something about the Catholic religion most likely, and some guy named Lazarus. He was tossing her shoes out of the closet while opening various boxes and muttering. "ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING YOU CREEPING SON OF A BITCH?!" She snarled in agitation.

Ryuk poked his head out from between the pairs of jeans on hangers. "Hm? No. Sorry. I wasn't. What'd you say?"

"I said…where's the best place I can try out The Life Script? I'm thinking of a hospital. That's a good place to start." She suggested.

"You wanna go use that thing at a hospital? Why not on a recent murder victim?" He put her closet back in order but the left the shoes all on the floor. "Your stuff's not a lot of fun to snoop through."

Keegan rolled her eyes. "Put my shoes back please and come on. I can visit the hospital. A friend of mine works there." She put the Life Script into her should bag and left her room. Regardless of whether Ryuk followed or not was completely up to him.

"Huh? Hey! Wait up!" He called after her, transparently going through her door before he was floating next to her again. "You're seriously using that thing at a hospital? What for?"

"Let's just say I've got a good reason to do it." Keegan smiled softly to herself.

--

St. Agnes hospital was usually crowded in the afternoon and her friend Dr. Von Nordeck was always on call due to being the hospital's best, and youngest hired doctor. Some there said he was a genius while others said he got his job on pure dumb luck. After signing in at the front desk for visiting hours, she caught sight of the gangly young man making rounds and walking in a quick stride. His white coat all wrinkled from him not ironing it. Dr. Oliver Von Nordeck always looked jittery and a mess.

"Come on." She whispered to Ryuk, making sure that he wouldn't see her there as she ducked into the terminally ill ward in the pediatrics section. By this time, most of the kids were sleeping. When Keegan closed the door behind her as carefully as she could before pulling out the Life Script and slowly making her rounds around the little beds in which the children slept. Most of them looked pretty stable, but it was hard to choose which one to save first. Oliver, Dr. Von Nordeck, was always good with kids and most of these were his patients or patients he was helping with.

She came across one pale little girl whose hair had gone due to chemotherapy and she was wearing a pink bunny hat on her head to hide her condition. She was sleeping at this moment and seemed to stand out amongst the rest of the little kids mainly because she was fighting two cancers in one. A rare bone cancer was being fought at the same time with leukemia. "Shit. This kid's not gonna make it if she's got two cancers." Keegan frowned.

"You're not serious. What? Do you got a soft spot for kids or something?" Ryuk asked, obviously not pleased with Keegan's rash decision. "What's one little kid gonna do?"

"Children are the future. I quite frankly would like to keep it that way." Keegan said, pulling the chart off the bed to read the little girl's name before putting it back down.

"Listen, let's talk about this. Why not start with an adult first? Maybe it'll be better." Ryuk certainly was being persistent about changing her mind.

"Because my grandmother died of cancer, and I'm not about to watch this little girl die of it too. Let alone fight two life threatening ones at the same time. No kid usually makes it through two cancers without agony and suffering. I can't think of this poor kid going through that. And mercy killing is out of the question." Keegan reached for a pen in her purse before pulling it out and looking at the little girl and her name on the chart. "Cameron Simpkins." She murmured. The ink from the pen immediately became a glittering white on the black paper.

Ryuk couldn't convince her any longer to stop after she started writing. He didn't understand why he tried but to use The Life Script for the first time on a child was not what he had expected. "Time of Life…" He murmured. "You have to write the time."

Keegan looked at the little girl again and wrote the date for the time to be around dinnertime, at approximately 5: 30, when she would begin to start feeling the affects of the Script take place. Cancer didn't kill fast, so Keegan gave a longer amount of time needed than she had originally thought of. "Now we wait." She said, putting the notebook back in her bag and leaving the ward.

"Wait for what?" Ryuk asked. "You know, I don't even know if that works right."

"You were so confident in it working before Ryuk. Why are you so skeptical now?" Keegan asked, whispering.

"Well, _I've _never used it. So that's why." He hissed in her ear. "So don't be a smart ass. You're pressing my buttons today." He sounded annoyed.

"Why? Because I'm not like Kira?"

"…Exactly. I can expect what he does, but you…you're spontaneous."

"Shut up and be quiet. You're making me look like a crazy person."

--

On the 6:00 news that evening, Keegan was seated in the living room watching t.v. She'd been playing video games for a little bit when she decided to watch the news to see if anything happened for the little girl that she had saved at the hospital. "Ryuk!"

The shinigami was hanging upside down on the ceiling again as he watched on the television as the report of the little girl soon came up. "Hm? Oh yeah. Looks like it worked all right."

"_I'm Kelsey Jillons here at Channel 8 News where we have just received report, of nothing short of a miracle. Either divine intervention has occurred or a cure has been found." _The reporter on the t.v explained the situation in detail. How at the exact time, 15 minutes that same little girl Keegan had saved began experiencing symptoms of fast recovery from her disease. With no trace of either cancer in her, the doctors were calling it a miracle.

"Hey, there's the kid. They're interviewing her." Ryuk pointed out with a chuckle.

_"I woke up and I didn't feel sick anymore. I dunno what happened…but…I think there was an angel when I was sleeping. She was talking to another angel. I think they were arguing." _Little Cameron explained, her hat still on her head from when Keegan last saw her in the ward. Her hair would grow back in time, but for now all the other staff could say in their interviews was that Dr. Von Nordeck was a miracle worker.

"My friend's gonna call me up sometime this week to tell me about that." Keegan flipped the television back to the game channel she was playing Ratchet and Clank on. Ryuk was fiddling with the extra controller.

"So, it worked. You got lucky."

"Yeah? Well, I'll be even luckier when I send my message out to Kira…tonight. Sometime late. If I can, I mean, I don't know how I'm gonna live stream it right to the Task Force." Keegan would have to find a way. "I need to open a link and fast. Some how back hack into their computer system. I'd need my friend T.J to do that because he's a dork like that. But I don't want him getting all wrapped up in this. He's got his own problems and I have mine."

"So what are you gonna do?" Ryuk snickered. "Can't relay the message to Light for you."

Keegan perked up at Ryuk's snide remark before she turned her head towards him. "Oh? Oh yes you can. Like I said, if you don't, it's no apples for you. At all." She was glaring at him now.

"I can't video stream it…but…maybe I can. I could write a threatening letter…Wait!" Keegan got up from the couch after pausing her game. "I've got it!" She exclaimed. She left the couch momentarily to go upstairs to her room. While she was gone, Ryuk leapt into the spot she was sitting in and preceded to continue where she left off in Ratchet and Clank. He had fun maneuvering the furry little protagonist around with his robot buddy strapped to his back. Shooting down aliens and other robots. Oh! How entertaining.

She returned with her laptop and her video camera moments later and placed a black disk into the disk reader into her laptop before hooking the camera up to it and made sure that the cap was left on the camera while it recorded only her voice. She could distort it later on the computer before burning it on the disk. Ryuk paused the game to look over at Keegan in the kitchen. "Hey, what are you doing?" He asked.

"I'm creating my message. After I record it on the computer, I'll burn it on this disk. Which YOU will deliver to Mr. Yagami." Keegan directed. "Understand?" She asked.

"…All right. You better have something good waiting for me when I get back though." Ryuk warned. "Apples preferably."

"You'll be getting a whole apple pie when you return. Cross my heart." Keegan promised him. Then she began recording.

_"To whom it may concern…At this point in time, I am unknown, you are unknown to me. I am here to offer a challenge to 'The Self Proclaimed, God of the New World'. Yes Kira. You. A game of life and death. A game that will lead you, Kira, on a wild goose chase. I will assure you, you will find no trace of me on this specially delivered disk. So it would bein your best interest not to find me. So hurriedly._

_"I, Kuro, offer a once in a life time chance for Kira to prove himself as a 'God' and accept my challenge. I, as 'The Giver of Life', will stop you. Should you deny this request, you abilities to kill shall be intercepted by my power and you will go mad trying to figure out who I am. Your attempts to kill criminals or anybody else shall be null and void once my power intervenes. I can promise you…that I, Kuro, will no longer tolerate your taking of life._

" _Unlike you, I will give life. I will not play YOUR game and take life just so you can revel in it. I will not let you complete your new world. For the world is nothing to tamper with and balance should not be upset. You have 48 hours to respond. Until then, I bid you farewell."_

_--_

For the next two hours Keegan spent it on editing and distorting her voice within the recording on the computer before putting the audio file onto the disk after adding a background to her message. She used Photoshop to easily create an image that represented a backwards K that was white with a black background. Her lips curled into a grin before she put on rubber gloves to pick the disk out and seal it in an envelope before coming back into the living room to find Ryuk well beyond where she had been playing in Ratchet and Clank. "Here."

Ryuk stared at the envelope with the disk in it. "Oh? For me?" He asked. "Yes. You successfully deliver this; it's apple pie for you. Fresh from the oven."

Ryuk's fingers stretched out greedily towards the envelope before finally he grabbed it. "All right, all right. But you better make sure that it's to my liking. I've never had apple pie before." He grumbled before disappearing from sight.

--

Around 11: 43 a.m in the morning, the Task Force received quite a rude awakening in the one of the mailboxes. All that was on the large white envelope was a Backwards K in black ink.

Dark eyes narrowed at the envelope presented and the backwards K clearly made him angry. Light Yagami suspiciously stared at the envelope before opening it and looking over the backwards K written on the disc. Curiously, he popped it into his computer and watched it while the others stood within the background as usual as the message played back. It was a mechanical computer voice playing back the dramatic message sent by this unknown offender calling themselves only as 'Kuro'.

"So…Kuro wishes to Challenge Kira? Well then, let's see what exactly this 'Kuro' is capable of. I highly doubt much." Oh, was young Mr. Yagami in for a rude awakening.

--

Authoress Note: Sorry to leave it off on who was speaking. You'll have to find out for yourself. Hopefully you all enjoyed the cliffhanger. I feel like I rushed this chapter a little bit but I really was excited to put it up just because my story seems to be progressing so well. Hopefully you will understand. Thanks.


	7. Yeah, it's hot

Authoress Note: First and foremost, I would like to apologize for a brief mistake I made when I first 'uploaded' Chapter 6. I believe I accidentally uploaded a file from my Alice in Wonderland fanfiction by mistake. So, I'm sorry Jillian Briggs for any confusion that may have occurred.

Next I would like to thank Sharnii Brooke, again, you're an avid reviewer and I appreciate your enthusiasm and glee for my story. Teehee. Also, thanks to other reviews I'm familiar with for my story as well. You've all been a wonderful help and influence. With your helpful questions and inquiring suggestions I can continue my story. Thanks so much!

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps), belong to me. Thanks_

--

The rest of the Task force stared at the computer screen in awe. Obviously trying to debate whether 'Kuro' was either good or evil and just what crazy person in their right mind would be belligerent enough to even think of challenging Kira without any sort of police force behind them. All they had determined was that the message was sent from somewhere obviously in America. Probably by N and the SPK. Though…N wouldn't be that crazy to challenge Kira out of hiding. Light was a bit puzzled over this disk issue.

"Maybe it's a practical joke. Somebody must have sent it to us by mistake." Matsuda tried to explain a logical point of view. Skittish and mostly one who did not wish to be involved in their various plans to try and catch whatever Kira was out there. Who knew what this 'Kuro' character was? Matsuda was nervous, "This 'Kuro' could be just another 'Kira' in disguise. Nobody would really suspect, would they?"

"That depends really." Light muttered, trying another fingerprint dusting on the disk. Nothing. Not a single print. This was absolutely bizarre; a person must have made this disk. "If we do have yet another 'Kira', a 'Kira' fanatic, on our hands we'll have to take extra precaution."

_'Fool! The nerve! Who would be stupid enough to challenge my power? KIRA'S power?_' His eyes were darkened again as he gazed over the disk. _'Kuro…just who do you think you are? You've basically proclaimed yourself as a God by telling me that you can 'give life'. How would that be possible? Unless you possess a Death Note of your own and plan to use it on me, you're nothing but a fake.'_

For the rest of the day, the Task Force spent it over debating about 'Kuro'. Light's final alternative was to just wait and see how it played out. All of the sudden, a news flash came on the t.v in the room and they were all hovering around it. The same news report that had been seen by Keegan was now being played in Japan. After hours of investigating, the doctors at a hospital in America were finally proclaiming Cameron Simpkins' cancers being cured by a miracle.

They could find no trace evidence of any treatment from chemo or anything that had saved her, but it was nothing short of a miracle. When her interview came up, Light was a bit baffled when she mentioned angels talking about her dying. While going over the disk again, Matsuda found a P.S to the message 'Kuro' had sent. "H-Hey! Look at this!"

This mini-file opened to reveal to the postscript. _"If you a hearing this, it means that you have just seen a news report, now streaming world-wide, about little Cameron Simpkins and her miraculous cure of Leukemia and Bone Cancer. Are you scared yet Kira? I sure would be if I were you. On behalf of the Task Force that receives this, I would like to present this news report as a token of my power, and show you that I am good.. Try and kill this girl Kira, and you will find your powers null and void. Sincerely, Kuro."_

Matsuda glanced at the t.v and at the smiling little American girl with her pink bunny had and blue teddy bear. He bit his lip and Light was staring intently at the screen on the t.v before he murmured. "Kuro…cannot be a god." He hissed through his teeth. "This is just another criminal trying something stupid to lure Kira out of hiding. We have to find this person and stop them from doing any harm. This 'Kuro' could be someone suicidal who's just _asking_ for Kira to kill them!"

"But Light, you saw on the t.v. Kuro saved that little girl. Kuro obviously-"

"I could care less about Kuro being good or bad, Kuro probably a suicidal meddler who plans to get Kira to kill them. The idiot!" He exclaimed, obviously upset now that he had 'witnessed' the power Kuro had displayed in the news report.

"I want a full on investigation, not just on anything about Kira, but about this 'Kuro' too."

--

After returning home for some leisurely activity and dodging questions from Misa about where Ryuk had gone, Light retired early and started him own investigation into this miracle. He did any search that was possibly on this 'Kuro'. His only search answers came up with the definition for it or color coordination for it. Kuro was pretty damn smart. Starting early when nobody knew whom he or she was. Light assumed that Kuro was a man, not a woman judging by how elaborately the message and computer rendering of the background image had been done. A man would use a computerized voice if they were a nerd or something.

He glanced at the drawer his death note was in and pulled it out. "Kuro couldn't be using a Death Note…but Death Notes don't restore life. It's impossible." He was stumped for once in his life. Light had never been stumped except by L, which was different though because it was his whole attitude and behavioral habits he seemed to express.

'_Kuro…whoever you may be, I will find you and use the Death Note on you. You will not escape my wrath.'_

_--_

At home, Keegan thought she would have trouble putting the pie together, but she thanked her culinary classes for that and with some help from her aunt. This was turning out nicely. The crust was a warm golden brown and she could smell the hot apples within the oven. The timer dinged when it was ready and she put on oven mitts to take the pie out of the oven and sit it on the countertop. Not moments after she placed it down, Ryuk was right in front of her and she hit him in the face with an oven mitt because he had literally scared the hell out of her. "Aaah! Ryuk!"

"Ow." Ryuk's growl was muffled underneath the warmth of the mitten. "…What's cookin'?"

Keegan caught her breath and wiped sweat from her forehead. "Ugh, don't do that. You scared the bejesus out of me. I wasn't expecting you back so soon."

Ryuk, being much taller than the human, could see well over her shoulder and his hungry eyes fell on the pie. "Ooh! It's done? For me? You shouldn't have." He said, his hands immediately going to grasp it. Hot searing pain etched into his skin and he pulled his hands away. "Yeowch!"

She shook her head. "Yes Ryuk, it's hot." This poor soul needed to learn some common sense. "Here, let me." She took a pie cutter and took a slice out to hand over to him. "If you don't like it, we'll just stick to regular apples. Maybe try to applesauce. Otherwise, knock yourself out. Also, be careful this time. It's hotter on the inside of your mouth than it was on your hands." She warned.

He slinked over towards the plate with the slice on it. Gooey apple slices were oozing out of the slice and he licked his blackened lips before he poked at some of the gooey apples with his finger and he lifted a bit of it up before suckling on it in curiosity before he lunged for the pie and made a mess on the table. Keegan winced. "Easy there tiger save some for later."

She shook her head. "So, how about that disk? What'd they think?" She chuckled.

"Well, Light is sure as hell is pissed." Ryuk explained, licking his fingers. "He's got no clue. He told the Task Force that you were some suicidal nut job trying to lure 'Kira' out into the open." He pointed for another slice of pie. "Is this the apple butter?"

"Does that look like butter to you?" Keegan snapped.

"No…"

"It's pie. Ask nicely."

"…May I…_please_ have another peace." Ryuk reluctantly obeyed before Keegan put another slice on his plate.

"Yes, you may."

"Gee, thanks." He said sarcastically before eating this next piece at a slower pace. "So, otherwise, Light seems pretty pissed that some but job would dare challenge his power."

"He saw the news cast then?" Keegan asked. "It didn't take the doctors or police long to figure out that little Cameron wasn't cured by modern medicine. Watch all the Christians be like: 'OH JESUS! SAVE ME TOO! WHOO!'" Keegan mocked. "Big deal."

"You have a problem with your own faith?" Ryuk asked, his tone unclear of what he was feeling.

"I haven't had much faith since my parents died. So I base it all on logic." Keegan explained. "What else did they say about me?" She asked.

"Matsuda thinks you're for the good of the world. Stupid nitwit." He grumbled.

"Mr. Matsuda is…?"

"Part of the Task force. He's mainly a good guy. Bit stupid though, kind of slow witted." Ryuk spewed crumbs from his mouth, Keegan having to clean up after him.

"I wouldn't be surprised. Mr. Yagami must have very stupid people working with him if he's Kira. I can't believe they can't see what's right in front of them." She was sweeping up the mess by now and she wasn't too pleased when he had taken the whole tray the pie was on. "Put that back or I'll punish you!" Keegan snarled, swatting at him with the broom.

Ryuk ducked away from it, displeased that she had made him back off the pie. "Hey! That's MY reward. You told me it was for me!"

"It is, but it doesn't mean you should just munch on it like a wild and unsophisticated animal." She grit her teeth, poking him with the end of the broomstick. "Now, go play video games. You can have more later." She put the pie in the fridge before retiring to the living room to flip the t.v on. "Ahem." She cleared her throat in annoyance. "Don't even think of going for that fridge."

Ryuk poked his head out from the doorway in the kitchen. "How'd you know I was goin' for it?"

"I'm not stupid." She shook her head, taking the Life Script from behind the couch pillow and watching the news again. On the report the news station reporter was explaining about a family of three that had been shot to death execution style by the supposed estranged father. Keegan winced. They had been killed just a few hours ago, judging by the family members behind the reporter from earlier were mourning wildly. Some were angry and the father, was being hauled off by the cops to the precinct by now. Ryuk landed in the seat next to her. "So, another dysfunctional family killed off by a crazy dad. What else is new?"

_"A mother of two, Mirian Jovena, and her two daughters, Claire and Lisa, she was always a bright joy and cheerful member of her own family before she was violently taken only a few hours ago."_

Immediately, Keegan flipped the Life Script open after seeing their names and a family photo come up of them on the screen. "This." She said rather coldly.

She wrote their names down rapidly; before suddenly the whole scenario of the live news report changed and there was screaming and crying from inside the house where the paramedics were. From the newscaster's expression, she was just as shocked as the paramedics in the building. The cameraman was rushing around with the newscaster running towards a window near the building.

"_This just in! We have just received a report, it's another miracle! All 3 family members have just been reported alive. Yes, that is correct. From this tragedy, another miracle has sprouted. From a cured cancer patient to family members coming back to life. If this isn't divine intervention, I don't know what is!"_

The police had to have the reporters back off as the mother and her young children were escorted out of the building by paramedics. They had blood on the heads and hands and the mother looked a nervous wreck. "Oops." Keegan said, biting her lip. Ryuk was suddenly cackling hysterically in the background.

"Shut up! That's not funny! I seriously traumatized that family probably by bringing them back to life. Hm. It doesn't matter. They're alive and now they can testify and that dad can go to the electric chair." She sneered.

"I thought you were against death Keegan." Ryuk said curiously. "Bit of a hypocrite are we?"

He snickered.

"The Death Penalty here is different. I mean, they don't use the chair anymore but that's just my opinion." Keegan glanced at him. "I'm against it though, depending on the crime committed. But if it hits me like a brick to the head after hearing about it, you bet your ragged ass I'm for it. Otherwise, it doesn't taint me because the blood will not be on my hands…But still. It's not fair that we humans get to play as God and take lives." She changed the channel. "It's almost 11:30. I better get to bed. You make sure to find out about that response tomorrow from Kira. Otherwise you don't get the rest of that apple pie."

"Hold up, short stuff." Ryuk called after her just before she could leave the couch. "I've got valuable information for you and you can live stream your message out there so that Kira won't be able to find you." He said suddenly. "Just…because. I want the apple pie ya know." Ryuk didn't like to resort to sinking to Keegan's level of bribery, but she was really working him with his apple addiction. She was right: apples were like his crack.

She turned her head slightly to look at his glowing yellow eyes with her lips pursed. "Hm? All right. I'm listening."

"Get your friend to teach you how to live stream it. You mentioned him last night."

"You want me to call TJ? My hacker buddy? I all ready said I don't want him getting involved."

"That's the point, get him to teach you." Ryuk snapped. "Stop being difficult. Light's not gonna find out it's you so early."

"…So you do care if Mr. Yagami finds me, eh Ryuk?" She asked, brow cocking in interest.

Ryuk clicked his teeth together. "I just don't want to lose that free trip to that apple orchard."

"Right…"

--

Authoress Note: Had to cut it short this time. Sorry guys and gals. You'll have to find out next chapter what happens. Does Keegan take Ryuk's advice? What does Ryuk REALLY want to gain out of this? And who is this TJ? Thanks for reading!


	8. Apple Butter Delight

Authoress Note: Hey, hey! Look at that! Look at that! 14 reviews by my peepers, 14 reviews! Whoooooo! Thanks so much. So then, I have news to bring up first of all. So let's get down to the order of business.

Sorry I haven't gotten to Chapter 8 yet guys, I've just basically gotten back from a New York trip on Sunday and I have no time at all to update or type it up Monday, I got sick in school and had to go home, that's a lovely scenario to envision, huh? Never mind that, otherwise I've been sick for the past couple days. So I haven't been able to do anything at all except lay in bed, blow my nose, chuck cookies, and well…sleep. I've got a lot of schoolwork to catch up on and I know that my Pre-Calculus teacher will not approve of me missing any more class.

I send my thanks to Jillian Jiggs, this time I spelled it right, the last time I spelled it I was watching 'Not another Teen Movie', so…my bad on that part.

To Syrupdrip, who's always one of my best reviewers, I'm still working on that back story for the Life Script so be prepared for it. Haha. I'm not giving anything away on that back-story though. Muahaha!

To PiScEs-BlOsSoM69, Yes, indeed. Light does deserve what's coming to him. Though I fear I may make him overly psychotic with the way Keegan's messing with him as Kuro. If you have any suggestion son how I cannot do that it would be greatly appreciated. As I'm watching the series I realize that he's got that whole calm and collected psychotic personality until he gets found out near the end where he just lets the crazy all lose. I don't want to do that until he starts getting desperate though.

And finally Sharnii Brooke, I'm probably going to start having Ryuk just go and start pestering Light for a bit, but I don't want to make him leave Keegan alone otherwise his Crack-addiction for the apples will set in with the amount she's feeding him per day. Oh well.

Anyways, enjoy Chapter 8.

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps), belong to me. Thanks_

_--_

At about 8:00 am on a Saturday morning, Keegan flipped open her Samsung Alias phone and pushed a speed-dial button that rang repeatedly until an obviously disgruntled and tired voice sounded over the phone. "Ugh…Yeah, yeah. What Kee? I'm a little busy here?"

Ryuk was hovering over Keegan as she rolled her eyes at the voice on her cell phone. "Hey T.J Can you email me some computer hacking step-by-step process sheets? I'm trying blackmail your ex-girlfriend because she keeps harassing me thinking that I'm trying to get a piece of your ass." This was an obvious lie, since TJ's ex had recently been arrested for shoplifting.

"Oh…yeah. Psycho-bitch again? Hasn't she quit yet?" He asked.

"No. Not yet. It's like she thinks I'm your mom or something." Keegan laughed.

"What a good little liar you are." Ryuk shook his head. "Lame."

Keegan snapped her fingers at him in frustration to go play video games in the living room before Ryuk shrugged and did as he was told. Playing video games beat having the human girl pissed at him anyways.

"You are like my mom. I'm 18 and you treat me like I'm 5."

"You have porn stashed in every crevice of your room. You're lucky I actually care what you do with your life because your own mother damn sure doesn't!" Keegan yelled into the receiver

"Ow! Ow! My ears! Highly sensitive! Half deaf here with my hearing aid off!" TJ shouted into the receiver.

Keegan held her cell phone away from her as he began cursing in rapid Spanish at her before she shook her head. "If you don't start thanking me for the things I do I'll stop asking you for things."

"Gee, would ya, that'd be swell Keegan. Otherwise I can just go live back in Uruguay with my grandmother and she'd love to see me running around in the middle of the streets dodging cars." She could hear him snapping his fingers. "Tell me what you're gonna do about that then?"

"TJ, you do that here anyways. So what the hell do you want me to do? Stop giving a damn about you because I'm you're friend?"

"…Yes?"

"Well, have I told you that your subscription to that Hentai site you have is almost up. Your payments due pretty soon and I'd hate to see you look like a sick puppy without your porn. Because I gave you money the last time you paid for it."

There was silence on the other end of the receiver before, "When do you want this thing emailed?"

"ASAP, please. I'd appreciate it."

"Yeah, yeah. I get it. I swear Keegan. You're like the meanest white bitch I know out there. It's not funny. I thought my people were mean and nasty, but you? Oh, no no no. You take it to the extreme. When's my next payment due?"

"Next week."

"All right, all right. I'll send you the step-by-step 'How-To-Without-Getting-Found-Out' Are you happy Princesa Keegan?" He asked nastily.

"You were drinking last night and got yourself a nice little hangover, huh?" She asked, kind of concerned at this point. Keegan rubbed her temples. Okay, maybe she had rubbed it in a little bit but it was for his own good.

"A little. I had a cocktail and some other drinks. Why? Why do you care?" He was mumbling in Spanish again before he heard Keegan snap at him suddenly.

"Because if I don't who the hell will?!" She hung up the phone.

Keegan marched into the living room, where she found Ryuk playing Spyro the Dragon before she held out her arms. Attitude was written all over her face. "Go on, got something to say? Say it?"

The shinigami was focused on flaming down ugly toad things right now. Ryuk didn't really have much to comment on except: "Well, it's obvious he's got some problems and you're worried he's gonna kill himself whether its his fault or not."

She flopped down on the couch next to Ryuk in annoyance. "I used to baby-sit him when we were kids, it's a little hard for me not to be involved in his personal life. His dad's a construction worker and his mother's not exactly the best role model for him."

"And your aunt's the best role model for you?" Ryuk asked, clicking the buttons on the controller without looking at her.

"…She's all I have." Keegan muttered, pulling a pillow in front of her with the Life Script underneath of it. The book felt warm to her and she snuggled into the couch as she watched Ryuk play. "I got my research papers done."

"Yeah?" Ryuk said, obviously uninterested. "Big deal. You got an A plus I assume. As sneaky and sly as you are I wouldn't be surprised if you cheated."

"Don't be ridiculous. I'm not like that. You don't know me that well Ryuk."

"Whatever you say, but it's your funeral I get to hover at if Light finds out you're Kuro."

"You said that he wouldn't know it was me this soon."

"He won't, but you sure better hope that your friend's 'How-to' instructions better be helpful."

"He's been hacking computers for 4 years, he knows how to hot wire cars, and he thinks he's a little gangster. I consider that professional." She chuckled.

"So, was your ex-boyfriend your only boyfriend of is TJ an ex-boyfriend too?" Ryuk tried to hold in his laughter at the thought.

Keegan almost threw up in her mouth. "Ugh! Me? And TJ? Absolutely not! That could never happen! Oh, hell no!" She was adamant in proclaiming the truth about that. "First of all he's younger than me, he's dysfunctional, and he's a little criminal at that."

Ryuk could have cared less about Keegan's relationship with TJ but it seemed that they must have been close considering Keegan was basically acting like his mother. "So…porn huh?" He said suggestively.

"Don't start." She said, flipping the video game off and watching the afternoon news. She made Ryuk rather frustrated because he lost his place where he was when Keegan changed the channel.

"Hey!"

"Quiet, you let me work my magic with the Life Script and it's two slices of apple pie for you today." She offered. Ah, how she loved this bribery technique. It worked so well on Ryuk.

"Fine. You win, as usual."

"Good, time to get to work. Kuro's got a little reputation to gain." She pulled out her pencil and flipped open the Life Script before reading the names and staring at the face of several more people that had been killed in the lower east side of the city this week. A seventeen year old girl, a man who had been bludgeoned to death by some gang members, and two children that were recently unresponsive comas in the hospital. Keegan operated this notebook like it was connected to her very being. Ryuk watched with a distinct fascination. Something was off with the notebook today. The inner cover page was glowing and he heard an unusual sound (something that sounded like a fingernail scratching on cardboard).

In inner page was giving off a little florescent glow as Keegan worked. When she was finished, Ryuk nudged her with his elbow. "Hey…uh, take a good look at that inside cover page real quick. Something was going on when you started writing those names like crazy." He sounded a bit skeptical, but Ryuk swore that he heard something being etched into the book.

Keegan looked at him in disbelief. "Come on, you're kidding right?"

"No, really. I think something's off on the Script."

Keegan flipped it back to the cover page to find a new rule just underneath #10. "No…freaking way."

"You're telling me. It says this book's got less than twenty rules. I'm guessing the maximum is at least 20?" Ryuk took the Script from Keegan, much to her dismay, and he began rattling The Life Script. "This is a bunch of crap!" He snarled.

Keegan snatched it back, as though the book was a holy relic almost. "Hey! Careful, what'd the Script do to you?"

"Nothing yet…" Ryuk mumbled.

They were both staring with baffled looks at Rule # 11.

'_The Life Script user's life span is blocked from being read by a user of a Death Note (excluding a Shinigami) with the ability of Shinigami eyes.'_

_"What are shinigami eyes?" _Keegan asked, blinking at the glowing text that eventually faded to permanent black ink on the inner cover.

"It's what I used to read your life span a few days ago when you first got the Life Script. A human who uses Shinigami eyes can basically see the names and life spans of other people. For humans it usually results as a trade with a shinigami by offering half their remaining life span in return for it." Ryuk grinned. "Wanna try it? You know, you could trade half of your life span for them."

Keegan frowned at Ryuk for trying to pull something stupid like that and she smacked him over the head with The Life Script.

"Oh! Come on!"

"Not even if your life was on the line, bub."

One thing was for sure, Keegan sure wasn't as stupid as Light when it came to that. Maybe Ryuk was just imagining things, but lately he'd found America to be a lot more interesting to hang around in than Japan. The pros of being around Keegan was he was fed apples regularly on a daily basis, he got to hang out in every room of her house except the bathroom and her bedroom when she was doing girly things in general and he got a front row seat to how this whole 'Kuro vs Kira' thing would go down.

Cons to this were that Keegan was too smart for her own good, she wasn't bothered by death in her own life, but when it came to other people dying she got involved in it and she got pretty emotional about it. Ryuk couldn't figure Keegan out. Her whole personality was confusing and he hated not being able to figure out what her whole agenda was. _'All I know is that she's trying to stop Light from messing with the balance of life and death. She's messing it up herself though, but it's all part of her plan I suppose. Americans are sporadic and jump from one place to another. She's way too smart. Light may seem like a genius at times, but she's like Einstein.' _

"I should be receiving that email sometime today. But for now, I'm going to do a draft message to send to Mr. Yagami, edit it a little, and then put it in a removable file before burning it to a disk. An original copy for me and one for the Task Force." She retrieved her laptop from the kitchen and set it on the coffee table near the couch before setting up her camera again. "I could get a voice recording device but it makes it sound more enhanced with the camera."

"So, am I getting my pie or what?" Ryuk demanded obnoxiously.

"Well, I should just give you the whole rest of the pie if you're going to be delivering this, giving me information, and telling me the names of the people he's going to kill so that I can look them up after getting my 'How-To-Hack' lesson."

"Damn it! You keep getting me with these bribes I'm just going to have to just stay around you permanently." Ryuk clutched his hands into his head. "This isn't fair."

"Life's not fair. Also, I'm considering having you try some apple butter I bought at the store. Later, when you've brought back what I've asked for." Keegan adjusted the camera with the cap still on it.

"Apple butter's different than apple pie, huh?" Ryuk asked, turning his head this way and that.

"Yes. A lot different. And Apple sauce just as different as the other apple dishes of the world."

"Mmm…Fine, fine. But I'm eating the pie before I go." The shinigami informed.

"Use napkins please and thank you, I'm sick of picking up after you. You don't pay rent and board." Keegan warned, wagging her finger at him.

"What do you want me to do?" Ryuk asked, chowing down on the pie after taking it out of the fridge. "It's even better cold."

"It's better hot." Keegan disagreed.

"I can eat it better this way. Now, what do you want me to do all ready?"

"I need you to bring me back the homepage website of the Task Force. That way I can stream my messages to them whenever. So it'll make sense right after. I can even record the miracles on the news when they come up on the time slot."

"Not the best idea. That would lead them right to you then." Ryuk advised carefully. "I wouldn't."

"Good point, it would be an easy give away. I just need a well thought out plan on proving that I, Kuro, am the one working the miracles." Keegan pondered. "Oh well, for now I'll record my message and you're delivery boy. Same place as last time."

"Mailboxes are cliché'. Just like you." He chuckled. "Madame Kuro."

Keegan shook her head at Ryuk's taunts and set to work. It didn't take TJ long to send her the 'How-to-Hack' document and Keegan was learning as she went. So her hacking tactic might have seemed clumsy, but she could practice on that later. It was better to perfect it than hack into anybody's computer anytime soon. When she had finished the disk (after using oven mittens to avoid giving off fingerprints), Keegan handed it over to Ryuk and sent him on his way. "I'm counting on you."

"And I'm counting on the orchard." Ryuk grinned devilishly.

"When this is all over, I promise." Keegan assured. "I don't break promises."

--

It was the early hours of the morning when Light got the call. He wasn't too pleased when he was just finally getting some sleep when his phone started ringing and he picked up. "Yeah?"

"Light, You're not gonna believe this but we just now received another Kuro message." Matsuda always had to be the morning person. Stupid. Light rubbed his temples, frustrated with the fact that Kuro had probably struck again as opposed to his own killings.

"What time? Did it arrive?"

"About 20 minutes ago. Boy, this Kuro sure does know how to sneak in and out of this place without being seen or caught on camera." Poor Matsuda still didn't get that Ryuk was delivering it. Of course even if they did find out that Ryuk had delivered them, Ryuk could just lie and make up and excuse that he thought there might have been apples in the mailboxes and that he hallucinated and hadn't even seen the envelope with Kuro's message in it.

Light clenched his phone in frustration. "Damn it." He grunted. "I'll be right in then." He managed to struggle out of bed, into proper dress code, and finally he strolled out leaving a note for Misa about some case that had come up. Just so she wouldn't call any bother him anymore than usual. If he didn't she'd be leaving 40 different text messages on his phone and 29 voicemails.

On his way, Ryuk suddenly was floating idly behind him. "Hey, I heard that you've got some pest control to handle." He snickered. "Somebody's yanking your chain Light."

"Where have you been? I haven't seen you for weeks." Light said, strangely baffled at how Ryuk just returned all of the sudden at a time like this. "Things have gone down while you've been gone."

"Yeah? Like what? All I know is that somebody's trying to piss on your territory. Moving on in it seems." Ryuk taunted.

"Yeah, some unknown challenger calling themselves 'Kuro'. This character has just recently come around. Ryuk…can I ask you something?"

"Like you haven't asked me things before."

"Death Notes…can't bring back life can they?" Light asked, obviously knowing the answer but he just wanted to make sure that it was true.

"You know that they can't. It's not possible." Ryuk scoffed. "You losing your brain cells there?"

"Just an odd theory I had. It was just to make sure." He sighed, shoving his hand sin his pockets. "You don't know anything about it?"

Ryuk shrugged. "I just know what I hear. I haven't been here for a while. So I really couldn't tell you. And remember, I'm NOT on your side."

"Oh yeah." Light mumbled. "I almost forgot."

Boy, Light MUST have been losing brain cells. He didn't suspect Ryuk of anything. _'Keegan better watch what she's doing.'_

--

"What do we got?" Light asked.

Aizawa, always skeptical of Light, wasn't too sure when he answered. Since Matsuda had went over the last Kuro message it was his turn to review this one. Now, since Aizawa usually suspected Light, it was hard to tell if this was 'Kira's' doing or not. Otherwise he had nothing and had to take Kuro's word for it if Kuro meant good for the world. "New details on some cases of people coming back to life in America. It's like Miracles are popping up in just one place right now. Kuro could move at any time."

"Play it." Light demanded, obvious waiting to see what taunts Kuro had in store for them at this time. The older man placed the disk into the laptop and it played the message recorded. As usual the same black background with the backwards-white K had popped up and the mechanized computer voice was speaking again.

_"By now I'm sure that you've received this message if you're watching this. Good for you Task Force. You've passed the common sense test." _The voice chuckled.

_"Now, to test your tolerance. How are you all taking current miracles? Do you still think that I'm some idiot trying to tempt Kira out of hiding."_

Ryuk obviously had left no details out when he explained everything to Keegan.

"What?" Light sneered under his breath. "He's mocking us!"

"Shh!" Matsuda hissed. "Just listen."

The rest of the Task Force was now fully interested in this video release than the last one.

_"So you think I'm stupid. Ha, hardly. It'll take a while for you to figure this one out. I've got a riddle for Kira out there if he's listening." _

Light seemed concerned now. "Riddles? He's playing games with us and Kira now?"

"He just said Kira, not the Task force." Aizawa said suspiciously. "But even so, maybe it's not just to Kira, but us as well. You say he wants to be caught, but what if he's leading not just Kira on a wild goose chase, but us too?"

"Then he's a fool for both. He'll get caught either way." Light answered.

_"What's the best kind of religious book to read? Tick-Tock, tick-tock."_

"What kind of riddle is that?" Matsuda asked.

_"Give up? It's a Bible. Try reading the __Bible__. Preferably the Old Testament, Kira. Maybe you'll find more about yourself there. Afterwards read the New Testament and find that just as God can take life, so shall he bring it back. I'm still waiting for your response that I didn't receive…What's the matter Kira? Scared? I ask for a response and you don't give me one. You are quite rude. Well then, I leave you and the Task Force goodnight then. Until then…respond or I'll keep saving lives so that there are none you may take."_

Standing there with his face cold and unresponsive, Light chuckled. "Well, Kuro's playing games with everybody then. We should go check out what he means by a 'Bible'."

--

Ryuk's return was expected and Keegan was holding out a piece of toast to him when he flew through her open window and into the kitchen. "Hey, obviously you got Light looking a little more on edge than usual. So, do I get my prize or what?"

"Here. It's apple butter." The gooey brown paste on the slice of toast was presented to him and Ryuk tested the taste before devouring it.

"Hey, not bad. Got more?"

"Later Ryuk…I want details." Keegan ordered, her eyes growing dark.

--

Authoress Note: I leave you with that. Hope you enjoyed!


	9. You owe me

Authoress Note: Look it! Look it! (hops up and down excitedly) 17! 17 reviews peepers! We should celebrate! (does the Caramell-dansen before realizing she ish the only one doing it). Ahem. Sorry. Anyhow, thanks so much to my fans out there! I'm sure that if you guys keep this up and maybe 'The Life Script' will gain more popularity. I'm so excited because this is my most popular story that I have here. Thanks so much guys!

Special Thanks: (The usual suspects and some new ones, lol. Jut kidding guys. You earn your spotlights as great and loyal reviewers, so thanks for all of your suggestions and helpful ideas. It helps that the reviewers can take part in helping me make my story a better reading delight for not just myself but you guys as well).

(A newcomer!) Sahxyel: I'm so glad you've finally come out of hiding. It makes me appreciate the fact that silent readers also enjoy my story. I'm glad you came out to review on my story and offer your delight in it. I hope you'll stick around and become a regular reviewer in the future chapters. I'd love to hear any input you'd like to suggest for the story. I always ask if my other reviewers can help me out by nudging me in certain directions. Glad you like the story. Thanks!

PiScEs-BlOsSoM69: Always thanks as a regular reviewer for my story. It's thanks to my regular reviewers that my story attracts more readers. I'm grateful to your loyalty to the story. Yes, yes. Another American SPK Task Force would be interesting but these events are happening kind of right in the middle of everything without it getting to drastic yet. I plan to hold off, but I will consider that idea: maybe. I'm not big on it, but it's definitely something to think about. Thanks.

Sharnii Brooke: Another regular reviewer I'd like to thank for staying loyal to the story. I'm thinking that when the story gets to 25 reviews I might actually do a sketch of The Life Script on deviantart (my name's the same there as it is here. Haha.). I can't guarantee it'll be the best sketch but it's just going to be a sketch. Just to give you better idea of what the life-giving notebook would look like. Anyways, it's always fun to torture Light though. I find myself disliking him more and more as I watch Death Note and just want to beat him with the damn notebook in general. He makes me want to chew bricks when he does that evil little laugh (shudder). But I figure Ryuk better check in while he's still on Light's good side. Thanks.

Syrupdrip: She's rather busy at this time, but I know she always reviews. SO I put this in here for her just in case. Haha. Thanks for also being another loyal reviewer. Hope you don't work too hard while you're busy.

I hope you all enjoy Chapter 9.

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps), belong to me. Thanks_

--

"Well, Light certainly wanted to know where I've been." The shinigami was lying stretched across her couch as she fixed dinner in the kitchen with her aunt. Aunt Carol had come home early from work so Keegan had to stop talking to Ryuk until later when her aunt went out again (bingo night at the church you see). At this time, Keegan was multi-tasking as she cooked. Listening to Ryuk and stirring spaghetti sauce at the same time.

"So Keegan, did you get your paper done?" Aunt Carol asked.

The young Irish-American woman shrugged. "Eh. It was so-so. I didn't exactly like the alternative topic I had to pick, but I had no choice. All the internet news reports were overflowing with stuff about that serial killer 'killer' in Japan."

"Oh! You applied for an exchange trip there…right?" Aunt Carol gasped suddenly, almost dropping the cooked noodles in the sink. The thought of her niece wanting to go there when it was dangerous at that time with a murderer running about.

Keegan caught the sieve frantically before setting it down. "Well. I did. I got the email this afternoon that I wasn't approved for it."

Aunt Carol breathed a sigh of relief that Keegan wasn't leaving the country to go to some faraway place she'd never been. "I'm sorry Keegan, maybe it just wasn't meant to be."

Keegan ran a hand through her tangled red hair. "It's okay. There were some factors that contributed to it anyways. First, I didn't speak the language. So it wouldn't make sense, and second the professor found out about my motion sickness on planes." She divulged.

Ryuk's brows rose in curiosity at Keegan's brief weakness. "Scared of heights?"

_'Never been a fan of them really. I'm not terrified of them, but high altitude makes me nauseous.' _Keegan thought to herself. She could tell him that later.

"Keegan, I don't want you leaving me anytime soon you know. I'll cry when you move out." Aunt Carol whimpered. Poor stout little woman, she had lost her husband a few years back right after Keegan's parents died. So Keegan and Aunt Carol had something in common. They had lost loved ones. Pictures of her uncle were around the house but Keegan didn't think much of him because she never met the man. "I really will. " Aunt Carol didn't bother to talk about the recent miracles with Keegan considering that her niece had an Agnostic attitude and often didn't talk about religion unless in a debate at college in one of the classes.

"I'm still a full-time student Aunt Carol. I can't get my dream job yet." Keegan shook her head. "I'll be living with you for a while. Besides, it's just you and me. It's not a problem living here at all. I need to start paying you rent though."

"Freeloader." Ryuk cackled, pointing at her from the couch into the little window space that looked into the kitchen.

_'You're gonna regret that later.' _Keegan glared at him.

" Oh Keegan, you don't have to pay rent. You're basically like my child anyways. I don't mind. Keegan? What are you staring at?" Aunt Carol asked curiously when she saw the girl's facial expression change.

"Huh? Oh. Nothing. The cat was on the couch. He's gone now." She lied. Lucil had thankfully strolled into the kitchen at this time. So it made sense he was gone so quickly.

"Meowr."

"No Lucil, you moocher! None for you. You have cat food." Keegan whined.

"He is your cat." Aunt Carol chuckled, dishing out her dinner into a plastic container to take with her to bingo as she ate. Aunt Carol had to rush out or she was going to be late. "Oh! Look at the time I have to go! I'm gonna be late for bingo with the girls. I'll see you later Keegan. Don't stay up too late!" Keegan received a quick peck on the cheek before her aunt was out the front door.

She could hear Ryuk howling with laughter from the living room. "AHAAAHAHAH!!!! Oh! Oh that was absolutely priceless! That's a gut killer! Ahahahaha!"

He was just awful. Ryuk was obnoxious and a terrible houseguest to bear at this moment in time. "You're being rather rude." She said, marching into the living room. "You know, I feel sorry for you. It's pretty damn sad that you don't have somebody to look after you. I mean, who would? Look at yourself. Your mother must have not wanted you."

Ryuk composed himself after a few inside snorts of laughter before sitting up on the couch. "Shinigamis don't have mothers."

"I wouldn't blame you, you guys must really be that unbearable to deal with. You're lucky I have the patience of an oyster. Otherwise I'd just kick you out."

"Then why keep me around?" Ryuk asked snidely. "I don't pay rent, I freeload off your apples, and just go where I please in your house." He had a point.

"Because, I promised you an apple orchard and I intend to keep that promise." Keegan turned her back to him and pulled her hair up into a pony tail while going back to the kitchen to feed her cat. "So, there. I don't just need your help Ryuk. I made a promise to you."

"You Americans are weird. I think even Light can attest to that." The shinigami humphed, blowing a few pieces of cat hair off his bony cheek. "So you want those details or not?"

"He didn't care that you were gone?"

"Light? Nah. I don't think he cares much about anything but becoming 'God of the New World'. Besides, it's quieter here than in Japan." Ryuk chuckled.

"It's Ohio. Ohio's a pretty subtle state in the U.S. At least think so. Anything new really?"

"That whole Bible thing was pretty neat riddle considering that most of the Japanese population is primarily Buddhist, Shinto, or some other form of religion I don't care about." Ryuk waved the topic off dismissively.

"Was that a compliment?" Keegan asked, her hands on her hips with a laugh.

"No…" Ryuk lied. "All right, so I gave you some credit there. You're trying to send Light on a little soul search route, right?"

"It's supposed to show him that God is not a killer. He's a healer and a life giver. Otherwise Jesus wouldn't haven been born." Keegan explained. "But then again, Light wouldn't know much about the Catholic religion would he?"

"That's funny coming from you, you seem so distanced from your own religion in a sense."

"Like I told you before, I don't have too much faith since my parents died." Keegan didn't want to talk about the topic of her deceased parents with Ryuk. He might try and poke around to find a weak spot. So, you have their home web site?"

Ryuk muttered unintelligibly before he handed Keegan a slip of paper on a sticky note. "Wrote it down on the way back so Light wouldn't suspect anything. No imprints on the pad from my pen."

Keegan read it over and decided she'd have to translate it. "This is a good start. Thank you Ryuk. Guess that means we can go grocery shopping tomorrow. It's apple day."

For a moment, Keegan thought she saw Ryuk's mouth twitch. "I don't know whether that was a smile or some form of restrained Tourette's but uh…you're welcome?"

There was silence from Ryuk and he crossed his arms in front of himself and mumbled something, obviously not used to thanking anybody for anything. "Erm…raggle…something. Yeah." A quick cough to mask a 'thanks' and Keegan shook her head.

"It's okay. You don't have to say it."

"Than-HEY!" Damn it. She almost got him to actually say it.

"Exactly."

--

After once again examining Kuro's recent disk message, the Task Force decided to call it quits for a while and work on the Kira case again. Light was working from home because at this time he needed to record his response to Kuro. If Kuro was as serious about stopping him as he was about becoming the world's new God, then he'd have no choice but to accept Kuro's wild goose chase. "All right then. Kuro. You want to play? Let's play."

As an untraceable stream, Light was going to live stream it right to Kuro from just about anywhere. The game had finally begun. _"It has been brought to my attention that somebody wishes to challenge my power. How careless of you to think that you can win against me. You're nothing but a foolish coward who runs and hides when it's time to face up to the challenge. You bothered me once; I ignored you and merely thought of your message as a mere prank. Now that you've tried to challenge me again with a second message, I'm answering. So now the only question I want to know, Kuro, is will you live up to your challenge? Or will I kill you before then? I'll await your response at anytime, until then. You've been warned."_

"Let's see how you like that Kuro." Light chuckled. "Until then, I'll have to continue using the Death Note limitedly until I have more proof of your power. Then I can establish a pattern of your miracles and figure out who you are so I can kill you. I'm brilliant. I really do take myself for granted sometimes."

--

"Achoo!" Keegan sneezed, clasping her face into her hands with tissues littering the floor and the little trashcan beside her on the sofa. "Ugh." It hadn't taken more than several sick students in her class for her to get sick. Keegan ended up catching a cold and had to stay attached to the couch for a few days until her prescription for her cold medicine came it. She admitted herself to the doctor who confirmed it was just a virus and certainly not the flu. Keegan was sure relieved but Ryuk didn't seem too pleased.

Just the day before Keegan had gone out to get him those apples she had promised and now he couldn't eat them because he thought he might actually get infected with something disgusting if he ate one. Not that he could, just, Keegan was coughing and rubbing at her sore throat the entire way back with the bag. "This sucks." Ryuk said, perched on top of the couch, hovering over Keegan.

"Tell me about it. I can't do anything. I mean, when I got home from the doctor's I practically had to puke in the hallway bathroom. It was probably yesterday's lunch. Ugh. I want my medicine to hurry up and get here soon. Aunt Carol needs to go pick it up. I don't want to be sick anymore than I have been."

"You coughed all over my apples." Ryuk complained.

Keegan's nose was all red and her eyes were watery and she sounded sleepy. "Ugh." She rolled over so that she wouldn't have to face him, the t.v was muted at this time and she had several cans of ginger ale and a cup of ice water on the coffee table next to her as she snuggled into the couch and burrowed under the blankets into a warm safe haven.

"What?" Ryuk snapped. "You're seriously gonna lay there and just-"

Keegan didn't get to respond before she pulled herself out from the blankets and suddenly stuck her face into the trashcan next to her and began chucking cookies again. "Ughhh!"

Come to think of it, this was probably the first time Ryuk had actually witnessed a human getting sick before. It was kind of nasty to look at and he sure was glad shinigamis weren't afflicted with the same ailments. "Ah…"

"I'm sorry I got your apples infected…" She coughed out from the trashcan. "I didn't mean to. I promised to get them for you though so I did."

Ryuk couldn't think of anything to say to Keegan at that moment because she was puking again. When she wasn't sick before, she looked mean and hardened to the world; A very unfazed young woman who was used to being solemn and by herself. Now she looked tired, exhausted, vulnerable, needy, and maybe clingy because she kept whining about her aunt coming back. It was unusual to see Keegan look so frail.

"Well…er…" This was hard to say. How do you excuse yourself for your behavior when it's just your natural self? He scratched the top of his head. "It's not your fault I guess." Ryuk mumbled, obviously unused to being so…so…_nice_. "Don't take this the wrong way."

Keegan didn't answer him, but she rolled back into her place and snuggled back into the blankets. While she wasn't looking though, Ryuk had plucked up the Life Script and began muttering in annoyance. "When you get better though…you owe me. Big time." He said, tucking the Life Script underneath her pillow.

--

Authoress Note: Aww. Wasn't that nice of Ryuk? Teehee. Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed. Stay tuned for Chapter 10!


	10. Kuro gets personal

Authoress note: We've reached Chapter 10! Yay! With almost 20! Almost 20 reviews! Yes people! Yes! Sorry, I feel celebratory. 'Tis the season folks. Also, to all of my reviewers out there: I'd like to wish you a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanzaa, or any other celebratory holidays happening this month or next month in January. Happy Holidays.

Jillian Jiggs: Poor Ryuk. Getting stuck with Keegan's not the best way to spend time, but of course when somebody coughs on your apples wouldn't you be pissed too? Haha. Thanks for reviewing.

Sahxyel: Providing an interesting barrage of question, I'm happy you had input to offer. Wow. Longest review I think on this fanfiction so far, but that doesn't matter. Thanks for your review.

And thanks to the usual suspects: Sharnii Brooke, PiScEs-BlOsSoM69, and Syrupdrip. You're great Reviewers as always.

Enjoy Chapter 10

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps), belong to me. Thanks._

_--_

"_It has been brought to my attention that somebody wishes to challenge my power. How careless of you to think that you can win against me. You're nothing but a foolish coward who runs and hides when it's time to face up to the challenge. You bothered me once; I ignored you and merely thought of your message as a mere prank. Now that you've tried to challenge me again with a second message, I'm answering. So now the only question I want to know, Kuro, is will you live up to your challenge? Or will I kill you before then? I'll await your response at anytime, until then. You've been warned."_

Keegan stared at the laptop screen as she carefully followed the instructions TJ had issued in the email he had sent about 'How-to-and-not-get-caught' and found herself in the Task Force Database. At the exact same time, this 'live-stream' message had popped up. "Mr. Yagami must have just sent this out. He's probably not at work at this hour…then again I don't know him."

"He's there. He probably had Misa send it." Ryuk cleared that situation up quickly, handing Keegan the box of tissues next to her on the couch. For the next few days she tried to do some miracle working here and there with the Life Script in spite of the fact that she had been sick, throwing up, and limited to the couch. She felt normal sitting there with the laptop on her stomach as she watched the plain white screen with the black K speak in a garbled and messed up voice that masked Mr. Yagami's voice from the world.

"He sounds obviously pissed at me." Keegan rubbed her chin, taking the box from Ryuk before blowing her nose into a tissue. "Thank you."

"Sure. I don't have anything else to do. Why didn't you just send me to get your medicine?" It would have been simpler if Ryuk went to get it. The humans wouldn't see him, have any knowledge of him, and Keegan would be able to get him apples if she got better faster. She'd ruined the bag she'd bought for him just a few days ago."

"Because then the pharmaceutical reps would think that some junkie stole it or I stole it and then there would be some major confusion. No evidence. And people would think the guys handling the medications were crazy and possibly lock them up in some psychiatric institution." She shrugged. "I appreciate the offer though. It doesn't matter right now. The medicine's here and I'm getting better. That's all that matters." She dabbed at her nose while copying the message like it said in the instruction 'manual' of her hacker guide before she saved it into a media file and played it again.

"You watched it once, what are you trying to get at Keegan?" Ryuk was stretched across the top cushions of her couch as she played the message again and examined the voice pattern closely. "He…was up late recording this."

"How do you know?"

"Psychology class and sociology lessons." She explained. "Ah…he did this sometime in the wee hours of the morning."

"I'd expect just shortly after I delivered your message to the Task Force they debated a bit more and he went home to work on it." Ryuk knew that would be the case because Light and Aizawa weren't seeing eye-to-eye on this subject. "Misa's just some dumb girl that happens to be like his lapdog at every command because she knows he's Kira."

"His love interest?" Keegan asked, deciding to put off on trying to further mentally analyze what time Mr. Yagami could have recorded this at. Even if she did ponder on it, it would be a bit impossible to figure out. She wasn't like that boy genius character on Criminal Minds.

"You kidding? He's practically using her for his own benefit. She has a Death Note too. So he can ask her to kill people if he doesn't have the time too. She's got Shinigami eyes."

"Wait." Keegan opened the Life Script and looked at Rule #11 on the inner cover. "If she has Shinigami eyes…she won't be able to figure out who I am. The Life Script is sneaky that way. Pretty damn good little book too." She read down the list of people she had saved in the past few days and from last week. "Hmm…The doctors say that they can't recall how they came back to life. Most of them just say they didn't feel pain anymore and recovered quickly. Some are still baffled as to how they're still alive."

"You're helping out people not only here but in other states too huh?" Ryuk asked.

"I watch Nancy Grace, CNN, and browse internet news articles on Yahoo, MSN, and other sites for info on people killed. Then I can find out if they had a myspace or facebook page or some sort of picture for them and bring them back."

"You're working slowly though."

"It's best this way. I don't want to go in fast and scary like Mr. Yagami did when he first got his Death Note. See, if you hadn't dropped the Life Script you'd still be stuck being abused by him." Keegan reminded Ryuk of the night they had first met and how she was the only way he'd sate his addiction for apples if he didn't stick around.

"Well, Light only got that Death Note because I dropped it. I didn't drop my Death Note or The Life Script intentionally. But I gave Light a choice to give it back or use it to how he liked. And he didn't just like using my Death Note he _loved_ it."

"Well, I'm sure that even if you did drop it on purpose you get a front row seat to all of this chaos either way. Right?" Keegan pointed out. Her aunt would be back any minute so she had to talk quickly.

"Where's Miss Piggy?" Ryuk snorted with laughter.

"My Aunt's not fat. That's baby fat and it makes her look adorable." Keegan rolled her eyes. "Don't call her that. She's all I have in this world."

"No brothers or sisters?" Ryuk asked, leaning over her shoulder to watch her browse through the reports of Kira's recent kills in the database.

"No. Only child. I wish I did have elder siblings at least. That would make me feel better knowing it's not just me around." Keegan scrolled down and looked at the pictures of all of these criminals that Mr. Yagami had killed. "Oh holy mother of God." Keegan whispered in disgust. "He's morally messed up. It's not just serial killers, it's misdemeanors too." She shook her head. "Mm. Well, that just proves he needs to be taught a lesson."

"Chances are he'll go tell Misa who to kill in order to assure the Task Force that 'Kira' is still out there and that he's not Kira himself."

"So he's trying to make it look like there's more than one Kira."

"You're so smart." Ryuk teased. The shinigami was getting annoying and pinched her cheek in mock affection. Almost like her parents might have done to just slightly embarrass her if they were alive.

Keegan slapped his hand away in aggravation. "Get the hell out of my face!" She snapped.

Ryuk drew back suddenly, Keegan's tone didn't just 'snap'. It had roared. Like an angry animal that had been neglected. "Sheesh. Come on, it was a joke."

"No Ryuk…it's not funny. He's messing with the balance of Life and Death and he's upsetting the Yin-Yang of the universe." Keegan was breathing hard against the congestion in her nose. "It's not right, it's morally wrong, it's spiritually wrong, and he doesn't deserve to have ever been born."

There was silence between them. "Oh. Harsh Keegan. Getting a little testy aren't we? Missing mommy and daddy?"

"I don't think it's funny when you have to sit here and patronize me, trying to get some emotion out of me when I know good and well that my parents are going to stay dead. Using the Life Script on them now would make no sense. They're cremated and I've grown up enough to live without them. There's no use crying over them when the world's balance is in danger because psychotic Mr. Yagami had to go and mess the planet up because he wants world peace. _Death_ of every criminal in this world…does not obtain world peace."

Ryuk and Keegan shared silence again before the shinigami drew away from her and hung around the other side of the room. "…Why does other people dying bother you so much?" He asked.

"Because I do not always believe that God is a benevolent being when it comes to the people of their world." Keegan explained. "A lot of Christians would get offended if I made a speech about that. So that's why Ryuk. When it happens around me, it's because things happen and I use logic to help it move out of my mind."

She was confusing. Keegan's emotions changed from a day-to-day basis. At times she seemed relatively levelheaded and knew what she was doing; today she seemed offset in her mind and upset about something. "Did something happen today while you were sick? Not that I'm concerned but your behavior's been a bit off today."

Keegan was typing something up on the laptop. "TJ called my cell phone this morning while I was asleep and ranted something to me in angry Spanish before he told me his baby cousin Rico died because his aunt's boyfriend shook him. The funeral's next week."

"Uh-huh…" Ryuk grinned, cricking his neck to look at her. "So make TJ's day better."

Keegan perked her head up. "You mean…bring the baby back to life? I've yet to use the Life Script on a child barely able to walk and talk. I don't even know if it would work."

Ryuk was back in her face again, hovering over her in the air. "…What's the worst it could do? Bring back a recently dead criminal on the list that Light killed and the baby at the same time. You haven't brought back any criminals and you do want to stop him…don't you?"

"You're trying to influence me into doing something that could be potentially stupid?" Keegan asked, glancing up at Ryuk with a frown. "I don't know. I might not want to do that."

"You want to relieve TJ's suffering? You _are_ like his mother, right?"

Keegan looked at the Life Script and she almost felt the book pulse from where it was on the coffee table. Her fingers tentatively reached out to pick it up before she opened it. "He does want more proof of my power. He wants to know that I really do plan to play my game like a professional." She stared down at the black pages before she picked up her pencil and began writing the baby's name into the notebook. "Rico Juarez. Death by SBS (shaken baby syndrome)…Life by my hand." She murmured to herself. "You're too young to die and I care about what happens to TJ." Little Rico had only been dead since Keegan had gotten sick. So no autopsy was performed because the cause of death was all too obvious.

"Any minute now." She went back a few pages as to when the last criminal in the Task Force database had been killed. "Sunday." She mumbled, lifting up her pen as she stared at the picture of the grungy looking drug addict. "Hmm…" She wrote his name into the Life Script. "Sorry guy, I don't want to bring you back because I don't like scum bags like you, but it's only natural if we want to scare Mr. Yagami."

"It's all a matter of time now." Ryuk and Keegan stared at each other for several moments before-

"If you lied to me about what I just did. Consider yourself punished." She slapped the Life Script closed and tucked it under her pillow.

--

The report was just about as baffling as the one that had been about little American Cameron Simpkins being healed of her cancers. Light looked disturbed as he stared at the screen. Matsuda's jaw was halfway open with his cup of coffee in his hands, Aizawa looked speechless, and the rest of the members were just shocked. "How can that be?"

The report of Toshihiro Takata being recently admitted to a hospital after the coroner had found the man screaming in the body cubicle. No signs of his autopsy scars were visible and he just seemed horribly shaken and frightened. All he remembered was the attack and all went black. When he woke up he found that he was in a very scary position. He was alive any nobody knew it until he started screaming.

"Wow…Oh God." Matsuda whispered. "This Kuro means business. If Kira had recently killed that criminal…then-"

"Kuro's power is real." Light, for the first time, looked worried. An emotion he hadn't shown in a while. "No…Kuro's…It's-"

"A miracle and Kuro can perform them. I suppose that's Kuro's response to Kira's message we got this morning about Kira trying to make Kuro live up to the challenge he made." Aizawa coughed out, lighting a cigarette. "This Kuro's got guts and some magic in his hands."

_'Kuro's a madman. Why would anyone besides L wish to stop the world from becoming a better place? Why Kuro? Why are you doing this? What is your motive? Are you really so bold as to challenge the power of Death with the power of Life? What is your secret? Are you using an enhanced Death Note that I don't know about? Is there such thing?' _Light rubbed his chin in deep thought. "Well, there's no mistake. Kuro is trying to take Kira's spotlight. I just wonder how this will all play out."

"Kuro vs Kira." Matsuda shook his head rapidly to get his brainwaves flowing again. "Wow…It's…It's astounding."

"It's crazy." Aizawa grunted.

"Kuro's mentally unstable." Light added.

Suddenly their computer beeped and this time a live-stream 'Kuro' message was coming it. "Hey! He's contacting live now!" Matsuda exclaimed, rushing to the computer before Light could and stared at the black background with the backwards-white K again.

_"Greetings Kira and Task Force. Surprised to be hearing from me so soon? I figure it's only fair since I plan on staying on good terms with you. I refuse to say the same for Kira. You all must be pretty shocked. Like my display of power? I know Kira certainly shall. See I figure that if Kira can take life…why not give it back. Quid pro quo Kira: You tell me, did you read up on the Old and New Testaments? I certainly hope so. Just as you can be cruel, I can be kind. I saved a baby today. A little tiny life that didn't deserve to die so soon…right at the same time I brought back Mr. Takata to the living world._

"_I imagine that Kira will be pretty angry that I keep sending my messages to you, but I think that he should get the message soon enough when I say that I'm not going to stand by and let you work the show anymore. It's time for life. It's a new age Kira, Task Force, and others who fear Kira out there. It is time…for salvation._

_Until then, I leave you with yet another riddle, what walks on two legs in the morning, three legs in the afternoon, and no legs in the evening? I figure you've heard this before but I want to hear your answer…_

_I fare thee well."_

"Well, that's easy. It's…ah…" Matsuda scratched his head. "Uh. No it's not."

The rest of the Task Force grumbled at poor Matsuda's incompetence for figuring things out.

"Kuro's knocking at Death's door." Aizawa said in concern. "I just hope he knows what he's doing."

'_Kuro's laughing somewhere and mocking me.' _Light thought.

--

Back in Ohio, Keegan was laughing at her success. She had successfully hacked into the database, brought back a criminal, and TJ's baby cousin. "Oh. I haven't had this much fun since I first figured out how to color on walls when I was a kid." She laughed. "I'm dying over here!" She wheezed, taking in deep breaths from her laughter.

"What?! Are you serious?!" Ryuk snarled.

"No, I'm kidding." She tittered, trying to hold in her laughter.

"You better be. Remember girl, you still owe me."

--

Authoress Note: Ooh…getting personal now with Light are we Little Miss Kuro? Naughty, naughty. I can attest that he won't be happy about that next chapter. Oh well. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter as much as I did. Until then stay tuned.


	11. It's a love token?

Authoress Note: YAY! YAY! 23! We're at 23 reviews people with 10 chapters and this one making 11. Give yourselves a hand guys (applauds before her hands get sore)! Ow, anyways I'd like to thank my reviewers again for your great input and loyalty to the story. Let's look at the line-up here:

(Another newcomer!) Michi-nin: I'm glad to have you into the reviewer group. Nice to see some new faces. I hope you'll stick around and become a regular reviewer like the rest have. I did get the riddle wrong, but it's better to leave it that way to confuse Light even more. Thanks.

Syrupdrip: I hope that your exams went well. Good luck! Ah yes. The infamous 'new rule' popping up in The Life Script. I figure that The Life Script probably won't have more than 20 rules. But they'll all appear in the Life Script slowly and at certain times. Unlike a Death Note, The Life Script can actually 'feel' a person's emotions. So the book is kind of alive in a sense because it can read the potency of a user's emotions. I'm gonna make the next chapter dedicated to Ryuk explaining more about the Life Script, at least what he's heard. Also, here's the chapter where Light gets suspicious of Ryuk's AWOL status. Thank you.

PiScEs-BlOsSoM69: Ah, yes. I do find that Keegan does kick ass when it comes to trying to mentally-eff with somebody really. I mean Keegan's not just intellectually smart, she's street smart too (she figured out real quick right away that Ryuk's crack was apples). Haha. I like her interaction with Ryuk too. Considering that Ryuk has to be on her side for the sake of not being neglected. Yes, we all have those moments spacing out with video games. I tend to do that a lot with the Ratchet and Clank series. It's my favorite game series because the creators made the original Spyro games for the Playstation (the original). Haha. Thanks.

Sahxyel: I know, I wish my story WAS made into a manga. Or a Doujinishi at least. That'd be a one of my dreams. (sighs happily) I'd pay money to see Light's expression other than in my head. I really would. Manga or Anime style would definitely emphasize how 'epic fail' his expression would be or a 'wtf' expression would be even better. I don't care. I just want to see THAT expression if anything. Haha. And here's the chapter where you get to see Light actually try and interrogate Ryuk.

Muahaha!

Enjoy Chapter 11 folks!

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps), belong to me. Thanks._

_--_

"You've been gone for quite some time." Light's expression didn't seem pleased when Ryuk suddenly decided to drop in on his bed and mess up the sheets because he didn't have anything better to do. The hard stare from this other human didn't make Ryuk uncomfortable in the least. Whatever was on Light's mind, Ryuk wasn't going to satisfy his curiosity. Keegan had been taking good care of him, so it didn't matter.

"Yeah? What about it? You usually don't seem to be so bothered any other time I'm not around." Ryuk sneered, his tone unpleasant and nastier than it usually had been.

"You told me you had heard about Kuro from the last time we spoke." Light was pacing the room, he seemed disgruntled and not in the greatest of moods. Just like Ryuk was when he got here. He didn't want to leave Keegan alone because she had just bought him a new bag of apples, but she had advised him to drop in so as to not seem suspicious if Light hadn't seen him in a while. To Ryuk, Light was now an enemy in his eyes as far as he was concerned. Light never really cared much about Ryuk's craving for apples, but Keegan was all over that aspect faster than Light was. She made sure he was well fed.

"Yeah? I've been wandering around for a while. Not much else to do since you're part of the big picture now. It's fun to watch though. You know, I think that the day after your new challenger's second message came, you looked a little more pissed than usual." Was Ryuk mocking him?

Light glared at the shinigami and pulled out his Death Note. "This is supposed to be helping me become God of the New World. All you've been doing it watching from the sidelines. Fess up Ryuk, where have you been?"

Ryuk shook his head. "You could say since you've been working as 'L' I've been playing games with the other Shinigami." Blunt, outright lie. It was necessary to lie at all costs when it came to hiding where he was. His need for apples was being sated by somebody else other than Light and Ryuk didn't need to stick around him anymore.

"Games?" Light sounded skeptical. Ryuk never 'hung-out'. "Don't give me that, where have you been?"

"Since when do you care Light? You're sounding more and more paranoid with each breath you take. You're starting to get scared aren't you? _Aren't you_?" Ryuk hissed as he bore those sharp jagged teeth. Light was starting to make him regret coming here just to even bother checking it.

Light held up his Death Note to Ryuk. "You gave this to me Ryuk. These notebooks kill people, what kind of Death Note brings people back to life? It has to be a death note! There's no other book."

"Exactly." Ryuk grinned. "Like I said, you're scared now. Somebody with this special Death Note isn't fond of you then. I mean, it's like a battle of Good vs Evil. You forget Light, it doesn't matter. I'm not on your side. So regardless of whether I tell you or not, you won't really know. Either that or you're too damn paranoid to actually believe what I told you about where I've been."

Ryuk had a point; Light couldn't force the information out of him. He couldn't trick Ryuk because Ryuk didn't have anything to lose like Rem had. "Well then Ryuk, guess that means no apples for you at all then. I can choke the information out of you like I have done before."

"True, but I'm not really in the mood for them right now. I munched out before I got here you see. Farmer's market I dropped in on." He snickered. He had Light there.

Light's silence was kind of signaling defeat. "…Fine. Go. But know this Ryuk. I'll be watching you."

"If you can figure out where to watch me _from."_ Ryuk wagged a finger at him. "Oh, just for laughs why don't you try killing that criminal again? I mean if Kuro can bring people back, you can surely kill people again. Heh hehe. See ya later." That said, Ryuk left quickly. Hurrying back to Keegan to give her the news and get his reward for being a 'good little shinigami'.

Light stared at his Death Note in hand and then thought about Toshihiro Takata from earlier today. He grit his teeth and he felt the adrenaline rush kick in as he pulled out his pen and wrote the name down again in the notebook. It didn't take long before suddenly the pen flew out of his hand and stuck into the wall while the name on the page suddenly began giving off red sparks and it disappeared. "What?!" He whispered. "H-How can that be? The name…the notebook rejected it. Why?"

--

When Ryuk had returned, Keegan didn't present him with apples just yet, she was holding out The Life Script to him to the page where Toshihiro Takata's name was written. The name was glowing. "Hey, what's the name glowing mean?"

"Ohhh…" Ryuk said, taking the notebook in his hands with a laugh. "Light tried to kill this guy again, didn't work because you brought him back to life. One of the rules in the Life Script. Remember?"

Keegan nodded in interest, pointing to the fridge. "They're in there. Help yourself." She told him. "But save some for later." She left him alone in the kitchen by himself before there was pounding on her door and rapid excited Spanish behind it.

Ryuk took an armful of apples and floated up the stairs so that whomever Keegan let in didn't watch him eating the apples. She hurried to hide the Life Script under the couch cushions before Keegan opened the door to find TJ crying in front of her. He was dark skinned for a Latino boy but that wasn't the point. He had tears rolling down his face as he kept crying in Spanish. "Aye dios mio!" He sobbed. "Rico! Rico! He lives! He lives! We were called to the funeral home and there he was crying and wailing in the little casket. "Milagro! Milagro!" He was clutching Keegan into a tight hug while sobbing into her shoulder.

She didn't need him seeing the Life Script, but she had it hidden under the couch cushions so it was okay. She was just happy to see that TJ for once didn't seem to be having a bad day. "It's a miracle, I tell you. God sent down a sign and-"

"Since when did you start praising God?" Keegan chuckled, knowing full well she had done the deed of bringing the baby back to life.

"Oh shut up, I go to church." TJ insisted. "Tito Juarez goes to church occasionally unlike you."

She shook her head offering him the box of tissues in the kitchen while he dabbed at his face. "I heard on the news that your family seemed ecstatic and were lighting every candle in their house. Your aunt broke out the rosaries they explained." Keegan sighed. "Wish my faith was that sustaining." She did wish, but when Keegan thought about it she knew that wasn't a good idea. Her Agnostic nature was part of who she was.

"You should come and see him mira, he's all smiling and squealing. Nina's still crying. Oh damn you should have seen Carlos' face when the cops were taking him to the precinct again and she walked by with that baby. Damn was that punto' mind fu-"

"Hey! That language, not acceptable in this house." Keegan scolded. "You know better."

TJ frowned. "Hey, hey. I hate Carlos. I hated Carlos from the moment Auntie Nina introduced him to the family. We all knew he was no good."

"He's not Rico's dad is he?" Keegan asked with worry.

"Nah, that gringo Paul is. He pays child support though. Nina and he were stupid drunk when she got knocked up. Rico goes to see his daddy tomorrow so that he can see his kid's alive and well." TJ was laughing.

"Well TJ, I'm glad to see that you're in a better mood than you were before." Keegan patted him on the back. "Go home to your folks, I've got some homework to do for school okay. Better get working on those college applications soon TJ." Keegan advised strongly. "You don't want to be a bum and not go to college do you?"

"Hey, I take offense to that. You're insulting my people."

"You let me call you Brown Bear…"

There was awkward silence from the young Hispanic man before he whined. "But it's an endearing term…You saying I won't go to college is just mean."

"Well, you did quote I was the 'meanest white girl' you've ever known." She reminded him of a few days ago about his porn. "Go home and get some sleep. I'll stop by to see the baby tomorrow. Okay, go."

"But what about my money…"

"Go." Keegan pointed at the door. "I'll give it to you tomorrow." That said she pushed him out the door and closed it. Ryuk poked his head out from the banister by the stairs.

"He gone?"

"Yeah."

"He's got a funny accent."

"He's Uraguayan."

"Which is…?"

"South America. Ryuk, I don't have time for personal questions. You saw Mr. Yagami. How did it go?"

Ryuk was chomping on the cores of several apples before he answered. "Well, he was pretty damn livid when I went to see him. Badgering me with questions of where I've been."

"Oh yeah." She lifted up the cushion and pulled out the Life Script. "He probably asked you questions about how I was doing my work?"

"He's definitely a little worried. I questioned is he was scared or not. Light wouldn't say whether he was or not. I confirmed that he was paranoid though." He was sitting on the arm of her couch again. "You know, your emails are fun to filter through." Ryuk chuckled, glancing at Keegan as she turned to the stairs to go retrieve her laptop.

She stopped dead in her tracks. "…What did you say?" She asked.

"I mean, the fact that your still talking to your ex-boyfriend says a lot." His back was to her as he continued munching on his apples contently as Keegan was glowering at his back.

"What gives you the right to read my emails?"

"You left it open. I figure what's the harm it could do. Jus tell me one thing Keegan…He wants to get back together doesn't he?" He asked, humor in his tone.

She clutched the Life Script to her chest, looking down at the floor in embarrassment. "Unfortunately. I don't have time for him right now, not when I'm fighting Mr. Yagami."

"So you miss him?"

"Shut up, why do you care?"

"I don't. I just find it funny how you humans, when you're not in relationships with each other you still stay good friends. I never understood the concept of friends. I find them pointless." Ryuk was licking his fingers, rather grotesquely is Keegan could add.

"Well…I really don't want to be friends with Joe right now." Keegan mumbled. "I don't want a relationship with him at this time. The world's in danger, I won't involve him, and when I told him we should break up I meant it. I didn't mean 'let's have a long distance relationship'."

They shared silence again. "…Do you miss him sometimes?" Ryuk asked, though he didn't want to it jut kind of slipped out.

"Not really. I mean he was the one who was excited about going to Ireland. He wanted me to go with him. I didn't want to go. Simple as that. Part of me thinks I missed out, yet I think I did the right thing. I get to take care of TJ…I get to save the world…I get to take care of you."

Ryuks pun his body around. "Taking care of me is entertaining?" He asked, grinning mischievously. "You feel that you have to be _my_ mommy now?"

Keegan didn't answer him. "I want you to tell me…why did you take the Life Script? Why haven't you asked for it back?" She squeezed the notebook tighter. "You let me have this for a reason…even if you didn't mean to."

"Well…I've only heard several things about the Life Script, but I heard…Jeez, and is this a pretty stupid reason why it was created."

"So, tell."

"I heard The Life Script was a love token made for a human by a shinigami."

Authoress Note: Well, I leave you there with that interesting cliffhanger. Hope you all enjoyed that, stay tuned for Chapter 12!


	12. Bleeding Death Note

Authoress Note: (lifts off in rocket mode)! Whoo!!! 30 reviews! 30 reviews! You know what that means folks? That's right, Hatter-chan plans to do a sketch of the Life Script Notebook on Deviantart! Indeed! You guys have been such great reviewers for helping the story get so popular! Teehee!

Once again I hand over the spotlight to my many reviewers!

Gamefreak321(a new comer): Thanks for taking time to come by and read my story. Yes, don't we all find the Life Script's set of rules intriguing? Haha. I know I do. So I'm glad to see some new faces to the reviewer squad. Thanks.

KakaIru-luver (another newcomer): Yay! Another new reviewer who has taken to my story. The Life Script? The book itself? Genius? Aw, shucks. It's not that great, I'm sure. I mean, not everything is perfect. Thank you, I appreciate that. Great to having you into the fray. Thanks very much.

Now for the usual suspects, ahaha. Line 'em up!

Sharnii Brooke: Ah…as endearing as that seems, I'm sure nobody _really_ wants to kiss a shinigami. Lol, hugs are as far as I believe Keegan would go. Ooh? The cliff hangers? You like? So do I. I find it always great to leave my readers on the edge of their seats when it comes to chapters like Chapter 11. Haha. I promise you'll be on the edge of your seat with this one. Kind of. Thanks as usual.

Syrupdrip: Ah! I see you must have received quite a shock when you read that part about the pen flying out of Light's hand. I can't tell you what will happen if he tries to again with other people Keegan tries to bring back. You thought the pen flying out of Light's hand was scary? Wait 'til you see this chapter. I guarantee you will be shocked. Thanks.

Sahxyel: Keegan and Light are the opposite of each other. Wonder what would happen if the coin landed on its edge? Ooohhh…then we'd never know who'd win. It might be a stalemate. Hehehe. Big thanks.

Michi-nin: Light? Get mad? _No. _ Really? Haha. Yeah, he probably will because he won't be able to figure out if she made it wrong on purpose or not. I think that it would be great if he gave the 'right' answer to the 'right' version of it and got it all wrong. Hah. Thanks.

PiScEs-BlOsSoM69: Just remember, the original Spyro games were badass, not the new ones. Ryuk? In love? Hmmm…not yet. Let's wait 'til later. Thanks.

Enjoy Chapter 12!

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps), belong to me. Thanks._

_--_

Keegan gave him a rather funny, and disturbed look, "Really? Ah…Well, let's hope you didn't drop this for that reason." She held the notebook out in front of her. "Ew. Gross much?"

"Please? The chances of me doing something stupid like the shinigami who made that are below 0. Also, you humans are weak and pathetic to begin with. Who'd wanna love you?" Keegan watched him turn his back to her and make retching noises of disgust.

"Yeah, I could do the same towards you but out of respect and decency I choose not to." Keegan rolled her eyes. "Besides, if I'm so pathetic why do you stick around me? It's not just the apple thing."

"I plan on getting my well earned rewards." Ryuk cracked his knuckles. Keegan could hear the bones popping repeatedly until Ryuk stopped.

"Sounds like a motor." She hummed in reference to the rhythmic sound his knuckles made when he cracked them. "By the way, is the shinigami who made the Life Script still around?" Keegan casually flipped through the pages to count how many names she had written down.

Ryuk was crawling around on her ceiling before she suddenly prodded him with the stray swiffer sweeper by the staircase. "Get down from there. Unless you're going to clean for cobwebs, get down." She batted at him twice with the swiffer before he grabbed it.

"Stop hitting me! I'll talk, I'll talk. You know, I'm pretty bored in this damn place. Don't you do anything fun? I don't know if I'm more bored here or with Light."

Keegan drew the swiffer away from him while tapping her foot. "So talk."

"Well, as far as I know, the two 'lovers' are as dead as a dead skunk."

"So, chances of finding out the Script's true origins are slim to nil." Keegan frowned. "Big help that is."

Ryuk crawled around on the ceiling before dropping down in front of her again. "Come on, seriously. Do you just sit around your house all day and do nothing but work for school and such? Light's home life was a bit more interesting than yours."

"Well, I was actually planning on doing some cleaning around the house today. Mainly in the kitchen, living room, and bathroom, but otherwise no. I don't do much. I'm a hermit almost." Keegan added. "So, we can clean house if that helps."

"Chores?! I don't work, I'm a freeloader."

"Look, all you'd have to do is swiffer along the ceiling and upper walls to get the dust off them. I can handle everything else." Keegan added.

"Well, let's see, afterwards you plan to reward me for being a good little shinigami, right?" He licked those blackened lips before Keegan smacked him with the swiffer again. "Ouch! Will you quit it!"

"Down boy, down. I've got some apple juice in the fridge and I don't think you want to get on my bad side today when you've got so much yummy apple goodies to try."

"You're an evil soul. I don't care if you're human, you're worse than any gambling shinigami I've ever known."

"I know I am."

--

The little plastic chess set had been arranged in its usual OCD fashion before they were arranged in many different positions to symbolize how far the SPK force was in this game. "Hm." Cold, dark, blank eyes gazed at the little board games and various other stray objects littered on the floor of the room. "I think that I might need another piece to my game." Near said suddenly to no one in particular.

After all the reports of all of these miracles of people coming back to life were coming in, Near had been rather busy with both hands. Not just on the Kira case, but now he had this strange 'Kuro' who claimed to be challenging Kira's wit, faith, and possibly his sanity in a sense. All of the evidence that the SPK had gathered so far was that Kuro was not on anybody's side. "Kuro is not evil. Evil people don't return life." He mumbled.

"Gevanni. I need the new reports in on this Kuro character. Anything new?" Near asked, now playing with some lego blocks off to the side. "I want to know what we're up against."

"Nothing yet. Although…in Japan, the Task Force there has been receiving messages from Kuro and even a response from Kira at one point. Apparently Kira wasn't pleased with Kuro's challenge." Was Gevanni's response.

"Ahh…I see. So it's true then. Kuro seems to be messing with Kira. I assume after Kuro brought back to life a minor criminal that Kira had disposed of, it must have shut him up quite a bit. I wish I had a front row seat on Kuro's playing side of the field."

"But sir, we don't want to arrest Kuro do we?" Miss Lidner asked with concern suddenly.

"Hm?" Near perked his head up. "No. Not at all. I have a pretty good idea what we can do. Kuro is not necessarily killing people, instead this Kuro is righting Kira's wrongs. What would be great to find out is knowing who Kuro is so we can strike an alliance with this strange individual. We'd have a bigger advantage then. But I suppose this can work to our advantage as well, not knowing who Kuro is. I suggest we try a live stream out to Kuro and the Task Force in Japan advising Kuro the contact us if he'd like to help lead us to Kira. Provided we not interfere though." He flicked a misshapen lego block to the side.

"I think Kuro might be a reasonable person." He chuckled.

--

Light stared long and hard at the Death Note. Out of all of the outrageous things he had ever seen…the Death Note had never done that before. "Maybe it was because I had all ready written down this criminal's names all ready. Huh. Nevermind. I'll just try and mess with some of the names that Kuro's all ready brought back to life. Best that I hit Kuro's ego with the first person he brought back."

Light pulled the pen out of the wall before he grinned, recalling little Cameron Simpkins' smiling face before writing her name down. Again, it didn't go as planned. This time, the works crackled and the Death Note looked like it was bleeding out ink before the pen flew out of the book and cut Light across the top of his hand. "GAHH!"

That surely had never happened before. It was completely un

The pen rolled off his desk and onto the floor. What had gone wrong?! That little girl was alive and well and the book had rejected another name. "RYUK! What did you do to this book?!" He snarled, of course knowing full well the shinigami wasn't there.

He rushed out of his room to fix his hand up with some bandages before he snatched the pen back up off the floor. "All right then…" He wiped up the 'bleeding' ink from the desk and dried the Death Note off. "Fine, Kuro, you want to start messing with Death Notes? We'll see…we'll see…Ah. But right now I have to take care of my hand first."


	13. Kuroneko

Authoress Note: Ooh! 33 reviews. Good job guys, also I did a sketch of the Life Script! Yay! You'll be able to check it out on Deviantart in the next chapter. I've still got come corrections to make on it. It's not that good but I figure that it'll help with the visualization. I'll try drawing the inside cover next. Haha.

All right folks, some mystery solving is in order. Also I owe my reviewers an apology. As you know last chapter didn't look as pretty as the others had. Here are several reasons why: I was rushed to get this updated to the story. Not by you guys, my parents wanted me to get off the computer and I don't have a computer at home. Ehhh…Anyways next reason, somehow my Word document cut off a good two page portion of humor reprieve for last chapter so you can bet when I checked it this morning I was kind of pissed to find only half my chapter in order.

So I wanted to apologize to anyone for any confusion and the mess made of chapter 12.

Now to the reviewers:

Sahxyel: Glad you still found Chapter 12 to be good despite its rushed stature. I'm glad you alerted me to the unfinished sentence in Light's section of the story. I didn't get a chance to read any reviews until very early this morning. I spent a lot of time in school trying to edit chapter 12 up early this morning so I wanted to make sure that chapter 13 won't have the same mistakes. Thanks for pointing those things out for me. I appreciate that.

Michi-nin: Yes, indeed. Light getting his hand cut open. I mean, it's not the death note's fault for rejecting the names, it's just those people's names are all ready in the life script. Also, it makes sense. I mean if you make sense of it, after you've all ready killed someone again they never say that you can or can't kill them again with the Death Note (or do they? I don't recall, oh well). So I developed the idea of the Death Note rejecting the name and kind of backfiring on Light. Not on purpose though, just because of the rules applying to the Death Note and the Life Script. But oh yeah! Light getting his hand cut was kind of entertaining. I knew the idea of Mello and Matt coming up was inevitable. I mean…I guess they can be. I haven't really thought that over much, but I don't want Keegan getting involved with the Mafia. So if I do decide to bring the Mafia lot in I'll keep Keegan out of it. Thanks!

PiScEs-BlOsSoM69: Well yeah. Light did deserve to get a nice smack in the face. Kuro's driving him nuts. It's natural. Haha. Everything happens for a reason, In Light's case it might be a bit more often than usual. Thanks.

Enjoy Chapter 13!

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps), belong to me. Thanks._

--

The Ipod radio was switched on and a playlist that Keegan turned on was titled '80s Classics'. The chic' tune of Madonna's 'Vogue' had come on as she started vacuuming in the kitchen. Once Keegan gotten to the living room, Journey's 'Don't Stop Believin' ' had begun playing, and finally when Keegan had gone to the stairs it was some good old-fashioned 'Bohemian Rhapsody' by Queen. Water from the wet sponge mop sloshed on the kitchen floor as Keegan spent most of the time cleaning. Ryuk of course was on her couch doing nothing, occasionally flipping through the channels for some horror movie or something to laugh at. Some good old schadenfreude.

Ryuk was given an unpleasant surprise when Keegan suddenly started using a contraption called a 'dust buster' upon the feathery apparel on his shoulders. Ryuk gave a guttural snarl at Keegan before he had suddenly disappeared and latched onto the ceiling, crawling along it like a brooding spider. "JEEZ! What are you trying to do?! Exorcise me?! Keep that away from me!" His eyes were glowing in anger at her, watching dust from the ceiling fall on the old pair of pajamas she was cleaning in.

Keegan stood looking up at him with laughter. "Aww…I'm sorry. Thought this only scared ghosts. I guess it works equally well on shinigamis. Hey, while you're up there-" She tossed the swiffer up at him. Ryuk caught it easily.

"Seriously? You expect me to do this?" He was complaining.

"It's one thing Ryuk. One chore. Besides it'll keep you occupied. Exercise is good for you, it's good for your health (if you guys have health) Not just human health either, Shinigamis need exercise too."

"What is this supposed to mean? That if I'm gonna stick around I have to work?"

"It's ONE thing Ryuk. Besides, you want apple juice when you're all done right?"

He muttered various curses under his breath before he started moving the swiffer along the ceiling.

To Carol Phelps the whole scene where Keegan had been conversing to the floating swiffer sweeper was baffling and she began mumbling unintelligably before she caught Keegan's attention.

Though, Keegan of course hadn't been paying attention until she realized her aunt was standing behind her staring up at the moving swiffer on the ceiling. "G-ghos…Gh-…"

Keegan looked a little more than appalled to find that her aunt looked just as shocked as she was. Her aunt had just walked in the door to come home from work and she looked faint.

Shoot! How was Keegan going to explain this to her aunt? Excuses were ouf of the question and she wasn't even sure if she'd believe the truth. "Oh…um hey Aunt Carol. Remember that conversation we were having the other night about the house being haunted?"

Her aunt nodded slowly, mouth slightly agape.

"Well…I got this one to do some house work."

"I'll kill you Keegan!" Ryuk shook his fist at her. "You let slip about the Life Script to that lump of lard and I'm gone!"

"He's not too pleased, but there's a positive side to this."

"Keegan…I'm going to lie down for a bit. When I wake up…this will have been a dream. I think I worked too late today and haven't been sleeping enough." Aunt Carol was trembling as she fumbled towards the banister and stumbled up the stairs.

"Okay…ah…take half a benadryl before you lie down too. That might help you sleep. You look kind of tired." Keegan suggested, almost insisting it.

After she heard her aunt's door close, Keegan snatched the swiffer from his hands. "You stupid ass!" She slapped him over the head with the dusting object. "Why didn't you tell me she was standing right there?!"

"I was too busy trying to figure out what the hell to do with that thing!" Ryuk snapped.

"You're the paranormal creature, you should have that sixth sense!"

"You're the pre-cautious one here!" Ryuk snarled. "Always telling me what to do, ordering me around, and bribing me with apples."

"Honey, you got yourself in trouble with an addiction like that."

"Yeah? Well don't expect any more help from me then! I told you, I'll leave. You'll never see me again. And I'll tell Light about you even."

Keegan scowled up at him. "Do so, and you're grounded."

"Pfft. You can't ground me." Ryuk huffed, grinding his teeth at her.

Keegan's brow cocked. "Oh? Really? Well, that would mean you'd be wandering around for days on end without any apple food of any kind. I doubt Mr. Yagami would supply you with anything then. It seems like he's abandoned you from the looks of it. Why should he care about your withdrawl symptoms?"

There was silence. Very, sullen, mood silence before he mumbled under his breath. "Fine, I'm sorry…"

"Whaaaaat?" Keegan held her hand up to her ear. "I didn't quite catch that. What did you say?"

"…Sorry." He muttered in agitation.

"That's better." Keegan said, turning on her heel to stroll into the kitchen, leaving Ryuk in a rather sulking state.

"You want this apple juice or not?" Keegan called to him from the kitchen.

Ryuk's head shot up. "What?" Was she serious? Damn, this human was a walking train wreck of rapidly changing emotions. One moment she was angry and the next she was back to her usual unfazed behavior. Keegan held out a Styrofoam cup to him.

"Here. It's Apple Juice. I don't know if you'll like it. You have to drink it rather than chomp on it. I personally like apple cider better. It's all nice and hot when it's cold outside." She shook the cup at him. "You want this or not?

"Why are you giving me this when we just basically screamed at each other?" Ryuk cocked his head to the side at her through the kitchen window. "It was pretty obvious I was 'grounded'."

Keegan put her hand on her hip. "Will you just take the damn thing all ready?" She hissed.

Ryuk snatched it and took a few sips from the straw. Not overly enjoying the rush of sweet toxicity to his mouth. He tasted too much sugar and handed the cup back to Keegan. She promptly poured it down the sink. "Ah. Too sweet? That's Minute Maid brand for you. Added sugar." She shrugged. "Juicy Juice is legitimate juice. No added sugar. I'll get some of that brand tomorrow."

"Hey." Ryuk called, watching Keegan toss an apple at him from the fridge. He was chomping down.

"Yeah?"

"Why are you bein' so nice to me Keegan?" He asked out of curiosity while she was in a good mood.

As Keegan pulled the Life Script out from underneath a creaky floorboard, she glanced at him. "Hm? Oh. Well…it's not really too big of reason."

"Seems like it is to me." He was suddenly on her table. Ryuk had a tendency of sitting suddenly on things when he had just been in the other room.

"Well, it's because you remind me of TJ. Only…a little less responsible and needing somebody who can deal with you. I don't know how his family stands him."

"You love it, don't you?"

"Love what?"

"Thinking you're everyone's mom." Ryuk chuckled.

"Nuh-uh!" Keegan snapped at him suddenly. "That's not true."

Ryuk gave her a skeptical glance. "Hmmm?"

"Okay, fine. It's like crack to me, like apples are to you. Only I can handle my 'addiction' well. I've been handling mine longer than yours." Keegan opened the Life Script to find Cameron Simpkins' name glowing. Her hands gripped the page. "That son of a bitch!" She snarled.

Ryuk stopped chewing on his apple. "Hm? What? What's the matter?"

Keegan threw the Life Script on the table. "He tried to kill her! He tried to kill that poor little girl I saved almost a month ago to get to me! What kind sick freak does that?!" She gripped the ends of the table. "I'll make him pay…" She sneered, a nasty scowl on her freckled face. "Light Yagami you will know Kuro's wrath."

--

"Hey. Light, what happened to your hand?" Matsuda asked, pointing at the white bandage wrappings around Light's palm.

"Hm? Oh. I had an accident last night. Cut myself with a steak knife. No big deal." Light assured, but he knew full well that wasn't the truth. Misa even had figured out that not even a steak knife could have damaged her beloved Light's hand. Something had happened with the Death Note that Light couldn't explain and he was aggravated by it.

So much so that when he went to get a cup of coffee, Aizawa asked the same thing and Light snapped. "How many people are gonna ask me about this today!"

Aizawa drew back slightly with his brow cocked. "Ah…Sorry?"

"Oh…" Light groaned softly, leaning against the file cabinet. "No, no. I'm sorry. I didn't sleep well last night and tried to find out more on the Kira case. Reviewing over suspects. I haven't been feeling well today. And N isn't giving me any reprieve either. N couldn't be Kuro though because the SPK actually exists. All I want to know for Kuro's case is if we're dealing with a criminal or not. I'm feeling the stress lately from handling he Kira case too much. Maybe I need a break."

"You look tired." Aizawa added in.

"Who knows? Maybe I am." _'Tired of Kuro's tricks.'_

Some time that same day between the hours of 3:00 and 5:00pm the Task Force seemed to randomly receive a live stream right from Kuro. "Hey!" Aizawa yelled when the laptop screen lit up and they were once again listening in on Kuro. Kuro this time was able to have them respond directly back.

_"Ah. The Task Force and Kira (who is out there somewhere) I'm glad to see you're all still going at my case. How goes the search for Kira? Not too well I suppose. Now, are you all equipped with the answer to my last riddle?" _

"What walks on two legs in the morning, three legs in the afternoon, and no legs in the evening? You mean that riddle." Light spoke up suddenly. "It's a man in the morning, an older man in the afternoon and the last part of it you didn't specify anything."

"Maybe it's a rock." Aizawa said humorously. "Rocks down have legs."

_"Humorous as that is, you're answer is wrong. At least the last part is." _Kuro chuckled. _"The answer is a man in the morning, and old man in the evening, and a dead man at night. Sounds intriguing, right? Thought I would give my riddle a little spice to it in hopes that it adds salt to Kira's wound about Mr. Takata still living. Oh? That. Yes, I know. Kira tried to kill him again a few days ago."_

Light now looked disturbed. "Again?"

"Again?!" Matsuda and Aizawa said in unison. "What?"

"But…Mr. Takata's still alive." Light informed. "If Kira was trying to kill him again, why wasn't he able to?"

_"I'll never tell. After all, I AM the one that brought Mr. Takata back to life. Oh, just thought I'd inform you, I assume you've heard of that little American girl: Cameron? Little girl with the two cancers? Well, Kira tried another murder attempt last night some time within the evening. Don't worry about why or how I know, I just do. Know this, Kira, I will certainly not tolerate you picking out victims that I bring back to life. I will make you SORELY regret trying an attempt like that? You sick demon. Calling yourself a God when you out rightly tried to take the life of a child that has committed no infractions, no crimes, and is still in the prime of her existence of a happy innocent childhood."_

"Kira tried to kill a little girl?" Matsuda whispered in horror. "My God, that's horrible. Kira has to be stopped more than ever. I mean, if he's going to pick on a little girl. That's just…cruel. That's not 'justice'. That's-"

_"Suspicious."_ Kuro added in, obviously quite angry. _"Be warned Kira. I will make sure that you pay for your crimes and if you try to deliver your 'threats' to me again…You will know more than just my wrath. As of this day, to the Task Force I ask you to not meddle in my affairs with Kira. Let me do you a favor and bring Kira out for you. And to you, Kira, I strongly declare a personal 'war' with you after this fiasco you have pulled. Killing a child I cannot forgive. You have been warned._

_Good day."_

"Well, looks like our workload just increased." Light grumbled. "So much for sleep."

--

"Sir, we've just picked up a frequency stream directed to the Task Force in Japan. To the L division." Miss Lidner informed Near. The youth was seated on the floor nibbling on some sandwich crackers that was supposedly his lunch. At the same time playing with that one strand of hair by his ear.

"Hm? Oh, yes. That. Let's have a listen in on it."

Gevanni brought the stream up just in time to catch the last bit of the conversation.

"_Be warned Kira. I will make sure that you pay for your crimes and if you try to deliver your 'threats' to me again…You will know more than just my wrath. As of this day, to the Task Force I ask you to not meddle in my affairs with Kira. Let me do you a favor and bring Kira out for you. And to you, Kira, I strongly declare a personal 'war' with you after this fiasco you have pulled. Killing a child I cannot forgive. You have been warned._

Near sat and listened with interest on this part of the conversation before the clip stopped playing. "It's an audio recording…Kuro sounds rather angry."

"I think Kira tried to try and push Kuro's buttons yesterday. While we were working on the Kira case, Kira tried to strike at one of the recent miracle people that Kuro had revived. Of course the child is still alive. No affects to death, healthy and cancer free."

Near looked up at the ceiling in contemplation before picking up a little black cat chess piece and he gave a small smile at it. "Kuro…hm. Kuro's like a little black cat. Cats are interesting creatures. Kuro seems a lot like one. Nurturing, good natured, has a personality…and can turn in an instant from lovable to fierce. I think that's what had happened. Kira is acting as the hand that strikes at it when he tried to do away with this little girl, one of Kuro's many miracles."

"Kuro's slowly moving the miracles up and out of America. The miracles never stay in one state. They jump around. They're sporadic. I like this Kuro character. He's very interesting."

"Ahem. Kuro could be a woman too you know." Miss Lidner crossed her arms in front of her.

"Yes, yes. Maybe Kuro is a woman, compared to how big of a reaction Kira got out of Kuro when he tried to strike at this little girl." Near put one of his cracker sandwiches down and started playing with a 1000 piece puzzle. The picture of several black kittens cuddled together on the box art. "Kuro…Kuro the Cat." He chuckled.

--

Keegan turned the stream off and smiled to herself. "Oh yes, Mr. Yagami. You tried to get personal with me, It's time for some much enjoyed payback."

Ryuk was sitting next to her this time holding the Life script up, almost trying to put it in Keegan's face to make her use it. "Come on, make with the script use all ready. I want to see what you've got planned."

Keegan snatched the notebook from him. "Stop. You nearly scared my aunt into a catatonic coma. You're lucky she woke up and thought she was dreaming."

Ryuk shrugged. "Old biddies gotta lose their minds one way or another." He leaned over her to look at the screen. "So, how's Joe?" He asked.

Keegan slammed the laptop shut. "Why do you keep asking me about him? I told you, I don't want him back in my life. So shut up." Keegan growled.

"You sound defensive on that subject. Because he called you yesterday and you didn't answer? And that lovely voicemail he left you." Ryuk was poking the grizzly bear with a stick. A very sharp and pointy stick.

Keegan clenched her fingers into the fabric of her pajama pants. "Ryuk…if you don't stop messing in my personal life-"

"If he's not a part of your life anymore why do you still have feelings for him?" He hissed.

"I don't, so why do you care? Are you jealous Ryuk? Are you developing _feelings_ you shouldn't have?" Keegan asked, nastily.

Ryuk curled up on the couch with a sneer. "Yeah right. Nobody wants to-"

"Dangerous territory there, especially with a face like yours." Keegan pointed at him. She started her hack into the Task Force database again and got into the criminal files. She found several more recent kills that must have occurred a few days ago. 5. That's not a lot for Light. "He must have to be very cautious if he's pretending to try to catch himself as Kira."

"I have feelings to you know, not the kind you're thinking of, but I take offense to that."

"Do you guys even look at yourselves in mirrors?" Keegan asked, looking at the several recently deceased criminals before she took the Life Script and started writing the names down in it while looking at the pictures and faces.

"We're shinigamis, I know we're not the best looking things on this earth but give me a little dignity here."

Keegan shook her head. "Fine, fine. Fine. I'm sorry, but you prying into my relationship with Joe is unacceptable."

"He says he's coming back to town to visit you in your voicemail."

Keegan gave him a death glare. "And HOW did you know the password to my voicemail on my cell phone?"

"Your password is the same as your cat's name." Ryuk snickered. "Here kitty kitty." He grinned at Lucil, her cat who still didn't like Ryuk being around. Keegan closed the laptop again and picked Lucil up. "Well then, I suppose you'll have to tell Joe, his visit's not welcome."

Keegan glared at Ryuk as she held her cat. "Come here sweetie. Mommy will fix you up some nice tuna in the kitchen. Mean old scary ghosty there can go without apples for breakfast tomorrow." The cat felt secure in her arms and was purring as Keegan petted him and cuddled him and gave him little baby kisses. "Yes precious, mommy knows. You love her too." She knew of course that Joe coming to visit would be a problem. He was probably trying to get back together with her again, which Keegan didn't want. She tried to mask her worry by fussing over her cat.

"Ugh. Gross." Ryuk gagged. Of course when Keegan mentioned him not getting apples-

"Say what now?"

Keegan grinned at him. "You heard me. If you don't start being nice to my baby Lucil I'll have to start taking apple privileges away."

"It's a freaking cat, an animal, a-"

Keegan held Lucil up to her suddenly and smile at him. "My calling card. I don't need to just use the Backwards white K as my calling card anymore. Lucil can be my mascot. Kuro-neko." She chuckled. "Kuro-Kat. I'll have to think on the mascot name later."

Ryuk hissed at Lucil in her arms, which prompted the cat to go running into the hallway bathroom by the kitchen. He was twiddling his fingers mischievously. "Heh. What?"

Keegan tapped her foot in annoyance. "Yeah, you're grounded for sure."

"Whyyyyyyyy?" Ryuk whined.

In the notebook on the table another New Rule had just been produced: #12.

--

Authoress Note: Whoot! Sorry folks, you won't learn what rule 12 is until Chapter 14. Long chapter kind of for this one huh? Hope you all enjoyed. Please read and review.


	14. Ryuk's being nice?

Authoress Note: WOW! Did you see how those reviews shot up people! The quota was originally 25. Now we're almost at 50! 50 my peepers! 50! Give yourselves a hand! Thanks so much! Whoohoo!

All right my fellow reviewers: Line up time. The usual suspects first:

Sahxyel: As usual, a great reviewer. I'm glad I have a loyal reviewer like you to point out the flaws for me. I again wanted to apologize for the major fiasco of chapter 12 and greatly appreciated your direction towards things that were either cut out or wrong with it. Let's give a big hand to my grammar and chapter fixer-upper! (clap clap clap). Thanks!

Syrupdrip: Yet another loyal reviewer. Probably one of my very first reviewers I can remember beginning the career for continuing my story. Thanks so much for helping the story get so many reviews on it. Also, the scene with Aunt Carol was priceless. Can you imagine coming into your house and looking up at a moving mop on the ceiling and almost crap your pants because you think you're on drugs or something? I know I would. Haha! Thanks!

Michi-nin: Let's give a hand to someone who loves the 80s! Whoot! Also the fact that she found out an interesting fact: Apparently in a music video Madonna filmed she was practically, almost, cosplaying as Mello. Hopefully we can get the link to the music video in the reviews for this chapter. I definitely wanna see it! Thanks for that interesting fact!

Sharnii Brooke: Thanks for just the fact that you love Keegan's name. I think that's the first comment I've gotten on her name actually being 'gorgeous'. Wow! Thanks so much!

PiScEs-BlOsSoM69: I'll never tell you when surprises are coming. They just do. ;) Muahaha. Thanks.

KakIru-luver: Don't we all love it when Ryuk's being protective? I sure do. It's probably weird that I have this strange fascination with him. Oh well. Maybe that's just me. (shrug). Thanks!

Whispers in the night: Yush, yush. Indeed. I think everybody here knows that 'Kira' means 'killer', but in the Japanese language Kira has several different meanings: Light and white. ^^

Thanks for wonderful support of this story guys! Enjoy chapter 14!

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps), belong to me. Thanks._

_--_

Rule #12_: If the name of a resurrected person is all ready written within the Life Script, a user trying to kill the same resurrected person may experience strange symptoms of the Death Note they are using begin to happen. Symptoms include ink bleeding from the pages from the name of the resurrected person just written down, rejection of the writing utensil or material substance used to write down said name, the writing utensil being mysteriously destroyed in the process, and crackling red sparks from the name written down._

Ryuk glanced at the Life Script sitting on the kitchen table while Keegan was feeding Lucil in the living room, trying to keep her cat as far away from Ryuk as possible. The shinigami picked up the notebook when he saw some obvious signs of the book glowing again. He opened the front cover to find another new rule. "Hey, Keegan."

She looked up from petting her cat when Ryuk called her. "Forget it Ryuk, there's no way I'm coming into the kitchen to leave my cat alone in here so you can just disappear in there and reappear in here to torture him."

Ryuk held up the Life Script in the window. "You might wanna rethink that because there's another new rule."

Keegan got up from the couch in skeptical curiosity before she took the notebook from him to open it and read the new rule. "Oh. Wow. There is a new rule. That's different. I think that the book's actually alive every time a new rule appears."

"Who knows, now where's that cat of yours?" Ryuk asked, twiddling his spindly hands together before Keegan smacked them apart with the Life Script. "Ouch!"

Lucil hissed from the living room.

"You stay away from my cat. You wanna risk another breakfast without apples?" She warned.

"No…" Ryuk mumbled, not pleased about this morning. "Not really."

Keegan handed Ryuk an unmarked envelope. "Then please deliver this to the Task Force for me please. When you get back you can try that other brand of apple juice I bought for you. But afterwards we have to leave for the library."

Ryuk snatched the envelope from her. "We're actually _leaving_ the house today? Wow. Keegan's leaving the rabbit hole for once."

She pointed at the door so he'd go all ready. "We'll discuss that reason later. For now, go on UPS man. Deliver my message."

"I have a feeling that the cat's on this disk huh?" He asked.

Keegan looked at the floor with a chuckle, kind of feeling like a dork for admitting it. "Yeah. I had to. Lucil's the perfect mascot. He's got the look. Vicious and cute at the same time. One-eyed and snaggletoothed."

Ryuk waved the envelope at her. "And what if I get caught?"

"They can't see you."

"Light can. If he looks at the cameras."

"Here's a thought Ryuk, if you get caught on purpose. I'm gonna make you regret ever doing a stupid thing like that."

"Oh?" The shinigami cocked his head to the side while spinning the envelope on his fingertips. "How so?"

"You squeal on me and the apple orchard deal is off."

Ryuk dropped the envelope and scrambled to pick it back up. "All right, all right. All right. I'm sorry. Sheesh. Take a joke."

"That didn't sound like a joke to me."

--

While passing by the mailbox at this time, Matsuda caught sight of yet another envelope. "Kuro's still sending disks? But he just live-streamed to us yesterday. Oh well…Light's not here to see it. I'd better get Aizawa and the others to take a look at it anyways."

45 minutes later he had popped the disk into the laptop and the rest of the Task Force was watching as the background was now white with a ragged looking little black cat sitting there eating a bowl of wet catfood. After the cat had finished, his face lifted up to reveal the one-eyed black cat staring at the screen and cocking his head to the side.

"What's this supposed to be Matsuda? Some kind of joke?"

_"What you are viewing right now is my personal mascot here greeting you and passing on my message and how I work."_

The cat got a little closer to the screen. Before he hissed at it. Ryuk had most likely provoked Lucil at this point in the filming of the dear little cat.

_"By the time Kira and the Task Force see this today, I will have resurrected five criminals that were killed in just the last five days that had passed this week._

_Until then, Kuro-Neko and I bid you farewell."_

Lucil meowed at the screen before getting in real close to cover the screen in the dark of his little nose before the video ended.

"What?!" Matsuda exclaimed with Aizawa chomping down onto the butt of his cigarette.

"Say what?!"

"Wait! He brought the recent criminals that were killed this week back to life? We've got to give Light a call on this! He's gonna go nuts!" Matsuda grabbed his cell phone before Aizawa snatched it suddenly.

"Wait…let's not. Let's wait until the news comes on then-"

Too late. It all ready had and the news reports were falling in as the recent criminals were seen in different positions being taken to local hospitals to check their physical health to make sure that they were indeed alive and well.

"Oh no…Light's going to be furious."

Aizawa held out Matsuda's phone to him. "Here…you make the call."

"Oh no, not me. I can't! I don't feel like having him scream in my ear. He's been so grouchy lately. He sure is working hard in his father's and Ryuzaki's memories to figure out who Kira is. I think that he's been losing a lot of sleep over this."

"I know…with the rate that Kira's killing now, it's almost like he's not at all." Aizawa murmured. "It's so strange…and it's so great at the same time. I wonder how N of the SPK feels about this?"

--

Near had complete the puzzle and was now watching the big computer screen as the clip of Kuro's 'mascot' had come in. "Wow. That's certainly coincidental."

"Sir, do you think that the stream we sent to Kuro will reach him?" Gevanni asked curiously as Miss Lidner was running through files again with other members of the SPK at the many other computers.

Near moved the black cat chess piece forward towards his own chess piece that resembled himself. "I think that I'd like to meet with this Kuro in person if we find out if he or she responds to the stream. That way we'd have an easier time luring Kira out into the open. I'm sure that's exactly what Kuro's plan seems to be. It resonates a child's game of 'hide and seek', 'cat and rat', 'mongoose and snake', and the humorous 'ninja vs pirate' gameplay. Kuro acts as both the hider, the cat, the mongoose, and the ninja at the same time. Hiding from Kira in order to have him seek him out, playing as the cat to pounce upon the rat, fighting as the mongoose in order to counteract the venom of the snake, and sneak in like a ninja to cut Kira where it hurts the most."

"Which means?" Gevanni asked with his brow cocked in unsure nature.

"Kuro will respond to us. I know Kuro will." Near looked up at the meowing Lucil on the screen. "Hm. Kuro's got a nice cat."

"Indeed sir." Gevanni mumbled.

--

_"If you are receiving this, I am in good hopes that you'll respond quickly. The infamous Kuro: I'm pleased to make your acquaintance. I'm N with the SPK force. That's Special Provisions for Kira. I'm hoping that I am not disturbing you by sending you this message."_

Keegan stared at the laptop screen as she sat on the second floor level with Ryuk sitting next to hear to watch the white screen with the black 'N' on it. "Oh yeah, that group. Light's been trying to keep them off his case too. He's not as bothered by them as he is by you though. You smart little girl." He was mocking her again while sipping on the apple juice carton of juicy juice brand. This brand tasted much more like the apple she liked and he was smacking his lips noisily.

"Stop that." Keegan whispered.

"Nobody can hear me but you." Ryuk chuckled.

"Still, that's rude and you're being gross." She turned her attention back to the screen.

_"We've recently had interest in you, Kuro. As an ally of course. We too are trying to catch Kira."_

"This true?" She asked Ryuk.

"Every bit of it. No lie there. This isn't Light you're hearing from Keegan. You're hearing from the head of the SPK himself."

"Calls himself N?"

"N, yeah. Near's his alias." Ryuk drank the carton dry and sat it next to Keegan on the table. "More?"

Keegan reached into her purse and produced another cartoon of juice while watching the stream with one of her headphone ear buds in her right ear.

_"I do hope that you will consider helping us in our quest to catch Kira and punish him for the murders he has committed. You don't have to join us if you don't want to but I think it would be in our best interest if we did meet in person. Just to get an idea of who we would be recruiting to help us out. I'd greatly appreciate a response from you. Until then you're free to continue your miracle working and further frustrating Kira in his vendetta for world 'justice'."_

The stream ended and Keegan put her headphones away. Ryuk was watching Keegan's face change expression from surprise to concern. "…I don't know what to do." She murmured.

Ryuk stopped drinking the apple juice. "What? Are you serious? Keegan, you've never not known what to do. Up until now. Why have you stopped cold?"

Keegan didn't know what to do at this point. Someone else knew she was working miracles too? "Ahh…Shoot. What should I say? I mean, if these guys are willing to catch Mr. Yagami in the act then…oh. What do I do?"

She looked unsure, confused, kind of under a little pressure. He'd never seen Keegan look like that before. She looked like she hadn't studied for a test or something and was in a rush to make a decision. Ryuk suddenly made the decision for her. "Never take candy from strangers." He informed with some good advice.

Keegan frowned and glanced at the computer screen. "…You're right. It's a no then." She turned the laptop off before getting silent. "…Wow Ryuk. Thanks. That was…uh…nice of you." She put the laptop in her Coach purse and slung it over her shoulder.

Ryuk casually drank the carton of apple juice down before he deposited it into the trashcan next to the table with the other discarded carton. "Yeah, well…don't get into a jam like that again. I might choose to not bail you out next time."

Keegan started her walk down the old staircase towards the front door. The library was pretty much empty. "I called Joe back while you were gone."

"Oh?" Ryuk asked.

"Yeah, told him to stop trying to get back together with me. So in response to that he bought me a set of crappy 80s horror movies. He left them on the doorstep and must have run off."

Ryuk looked at her funny. "What idiot does that?"

"I don't know, idiots like Joe. I thought I'd watch some of them just to laugh at the crappy CGI effects and horrible mixing of the fake blood. Wanna watch it with me?"

"…Is this mothering addiction going to your head?" Ryuk asked, rather confused.

"Nope. Never felt more normal in my life."

--

He was washing the wound on his hand after having it bandaged for a few days. Light didn't expect to be hit so hard in the face when he looked up to see the faces of the five criminals recently killed. It wasn't until he got the call from Aizawa that he had nothing to say really except: "We have to contact Kuro to enlist him in our crusade again Kira. Then we'll have an ally." _'That way when I see your face Kuro…I can finally kill you.' _

"We need to set up a stream to Kuro as soon as possible." And he hung up. Of course after Light had hung up, he ripped the Death Note out from the silverware drawer and took a pencil to the notebook, trying to desperately rewrite the names back down in it all at once. When he was sure they were going to stay, his eyes became dark and his grin wide.

The satisfaction didn't last long before the Death Note all of the sudden started bleeding ink all over the floor and the words crackled rapidly like firecrackers. The pencil itself suddenly broke and the pieces burst into flames. Light smothered the fire from the pencil and stood looking horrified at the notebook. "A book…that even denies Death from happening again…" He was staring hard at the Death Note before he bit on his lip.

"AAAHH!!!! KURO! WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME?!!!"

--

"Here." Keegan set a bowl of apples in front of Ryuk while she had a box of pizza in front of her to go with the movie. Ryuk was noisily attacking the bowl of apples as she switched the movie on.

"You're being a little too nice to me lately, girl. What's the matter with you? You fall and hit your head in the shower?" Ryuk asked.

Keegan shrugged. "Let's just say tonight's movie night and you earned it because you helped me today. You seemed to be the nice one today here." She switched on 'Night of the Creeps' and hit play on her Playstation. Keegan felt that DVD players were too complicated to use because the buttons hardly worked for her. It was easier to use the Playstation as the DVD player instead.

"Hey, that was a one time thing only. You had no idea what you were going to do. So you looked a little confused, I nudged you in the right direction, and it's all good." Ryuk was strongly defending himself at this point.

Keegan cocked a brow at him with her mouth filled with pizza crust and cheese. "Uh-huh." She said with her mouth full. "I see."

"It's the truth."

"You love it don't you?" Keegan asked.

"Shinigamis aren't capable of love." Ryuk chomped noisily on his apples.

"Everybody has emotions Ryuk. I'm sure you shinigamis do too." She justified.

"So what is it you think I love besides apples?" He asked, rather rudely.

"Hanging out around here, you love the fact that somebody actually takes care of you." Keegan chuckled. "It's obvious. Light must have been a poor pet owner."

"I'm not your pet!" Ryuk snapped.

"No, no. But you are my friend."

Ryuk gave her a kind of awkward silence and bit into another apple. "Uh-huh. Yeah. Yeah. We're friends. Sure, sure." He said, not really caring.

Keegan frowned. "…You don't have friends do you Ryuk?"

More awkward silence. He chewed noisily on his apples. "…Why do you care? You're prying into my personal life now."

"You did the same to me. It's only just that I do the same to you."

There was more awkward silence. "I'm not really likable. Not even likable to my own kind. So what's the big deal? Everybody's gotta hate somebody."

Keegan paused the movie. "Hate is such a strong word Ryuk."

"I know, exactly why I use it."

"But you're not a hateful creature, it's just the way your kind is. You're just racially profiling yourself now." Keegan shook her head. "TJ does the same thing, at least he has good humor about it."

"He's South American."

"He's Latino and he loves it." Keegan pointed out to him.

"Well, do you think shinigamis like being what they are?" Ryuk hissed.

"Not everybody likes who they are Ryuk. Sometimes I don't like who I am."

"Because your parents are dead?"

"That's not even relevant to the subject." Keegan snarled.

"All right then Keegan, when is the last time that you cried over them?" Ryuk said in retaliation.

Keegan went silent. "You know, if you're going to be like that you can watch the movie by yourself." She picked up her box of pizza and left the room to go upstairs. "Don't follow me either or you won't get any apples for a week!" She yelled down to him.

He heard the slam of her bedroom door before Ryuk's golden eyes stared at the bowl of apples in front of him, not really wanting to touch them anymore for tonight. "…Well Keegan. I guess that answers my question: Obviously…it's been a while since you last cried. Period."

--

Authoress Note: Ooh…Does Ryuk have a little soft spot for Keegan? Dun, dun, dun! Hope you all enjoyed! Thanks!


	15. No go there Joe

Authoress Note: 5 more reviews people and we are at 50 reviews! We really should get someone to do a doujinishi of this. I'd pay for that…if I had the money. I'm dirt poor; :( I blew all my money at Otakon this summer, now I am broke. Wahhh. Oh well, that's unimportant news. What's news is that this last Chapter seemed to be quite popular with Ryuk and Keegan's relationship in the fanfiction. Whoo Shinigami x Human snugglies!

Haha. Okay folks it's Reviewer recognition time again. Let's line up some of our usual suspects, but first a new one. Ooohh…

NekoDoodle: Thanks for reviewing on this chapter. I love your hopefulness about my story. I will reassure you that I do plan to continue this story until I run out of steam. I doubt I will any time soon, but for now The Life Script will continue it's story. Thanks for reviewing.

Now moving on: (The Usual Suspects).

Sharnii Brooke: I don't know if a hug will come around yet but…I'll surprise you. It will be a definite surprise for you in this next chapter. I promise. So just keep your eyes open and watch for awkward Ryuk behavior. Teehee.

Jillian Jiggs: First of all I'd like to welcome you back; I haven't seen your reviews in a while. Wah. It's been so long. I appreciate you stopping back again to confirm that you are still here and that life does exist outside of the Internet world. Haha. Yes, at some point Ryuk might try…something that's unlike him other than his usual odd behavior. I don't know about making out with her but he's definitely much more interested in her life than he had been before. So keep an eye out. Thanks, glad to have you back!

PiScEs-BlOsSoM69: Thanks for providing the interesting question about where you go when you use the Life Script. We'll find that out this chapter. Thanks.

And to the others whom will eventually review again: Syrupdrip and Sahxyel. Thanks for the support of the story guys!

Enjoy Chapter 15!

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps), belong to me. Thanks._

--

He couldn't get into the room. Keegan wouldn't let him. Ryuk wasn't quite sure why he didn't feel like invading her privacy but his back was to the door with his head against it. He could hear Keegan munching quietly on the rest of the pizza in the room. "…Will you at least say something?"

There was a loud thump on the door that made him jump slightly. Keegan had thrown her shoe at the door in anger. "Go away!" She snapped.

"At least watch the rest of the movie, it was your idea." He insisted. "Remember?"

"I don't care to speak with you right now Ryuk. You had no right to ask me about that. NONE."

"It was just a question Keegan, I didn't realize you'd react so strongly to it." Ryuk scratched the top of his head while Lucil slinked by him cautiously. "Stupid cat."

"My parents have been dead for 12 years now. If that helps, I hope you're happy. And stay away from my cat!" Keegan shouted through the wood of the door.

Ryuk watched Lucil's tail swish rapidly back and forth when Ryuk cracked his neck to get a better look at the cat. "…I wasn't trying to insult you Keegan." Lucil hissed at Ryuk and his tail puffed out into a long black fluff. "Oh shut up." He groaned.

"You didn't insult me Ryuk. I just don't like talking about my parents." Keegan sighed. "It's a touchy subject because they've been dead for so long."

Ryuk's arm was hanging over his knee as he watched Lucil hiss at him, without provocation. "Been that long since you were upset over them?"

Keegan muttered something unintelligible from behind the door.

"I take that as a 'yes'?"

There was a knock on the door downstairs. "I'm not answering it." Keegan said.

The knocking continued until Ryuk stood up. "…What if it's Joe? You gonna cry to him?"

The knocking downstairs stopped.

She threw another shoe at the door. "Shut up! You have no right!"

"You're the one getting a temper, girl. You're a hypocrite Keegan. You know that. You save people's lives and get upset about them dying but not about your own family. What's that like for a human? Shinigamis can handle being hypocrites very well. I'm infamous for it." He grumbled.

Keegan's silence was his answer.

"Fess up stupid human, why are you hypocritical?"

More silence.

Ryuk turned on his heel by the door and started to skulk away from the room. "Suit yourself."

"Why…do you need to know Ryuk?" Keegan asked, her voice muffled into a pillow.

He stopped, ears pricking at the sound of her faint voice. "It's natural. You'd ask the same thing of me."

He was given another round of silence before the door opened, her eyes were watery and she looked like she wanted to start crying, but she was working hard not to. Really hard, Keegan despised crying of all things. Made her feel weak and vulnerable. "I'm a damn hypocrite because I didn't think my mother would accept me mourning over them for 12 fricking years."

Ryuk didn't turn to look at her as he stood by the staircase. "So this is all about mommy dearest?"

"My mom loved me but…she was a little too big on the whole Catholic religion."

"Did she teach you that crying was a sin?" Ryuk snorted. "What a stupid mother."

The Life Script hit him in the back of the head. "YOU have no room to talk Ryuk, you don't even have a mother!"

He glanced down at the white notebook laying half open on the floor. Keegan's breath was heavy and she was gritting her teeth in anger. "Heaven." He said randomly.

"What?" Keegan asked, perplexed by what he meant.

"Depending on how you use the Life Script…most humans go to heaven when using it." He answered. "There's no way the book can be used for evil…it's not really possible. So if you miss them that much you could bring them back with it…Even after 12 years."

Keegan didn't get what he meant. "I'm going to Heaven? That's all you have to say?"

"Would you rather go to Mu?" He asked.

"What's Mu?"

"It's nothingness. It's where users of a Death Note go when they die. They go to neither heaven nor hell."

She sniffled, rubbing her hand on her nose. "Why have you been prying so much into my personal life? Do you get off on torturing people or something? Because we can call off this whole damn thing right now and you can get the hell out of my life."

Ryuk's mouth twitched and he slowly turned to face her, hunching over and getting closer to her. "I usually don't concern myself with human affairs. I personally find your kind rather stupid, like cattle in a sense. I wonder sometimes why you ever came to be but I can't question the great universe since I don't know the answer to that myself."

"You're hiding something Ryuk. You're up to something." Keegan said, a little more than annoyed that he wasn't just giving her attitude; he was being sneaky about his intentions.

"You're not like other humans Keegan. Let's pit it that way. Light's just like the other stupid humans on this planet. Somehow you're different and I hate not knowing why." He cocked a brow. "What's your secret Keegan?"

"I don't have one. I'm just Agnostic and have a profound sense of righteousness in righting the wrongs that have been done to this world." She answered, kind of creeped out by his behavior. "Again: Why do you care that I'm so different than everybody else? People are different Ryuk. I'm guessing shinigamis are the same way…just like the one that made The Life Script."

Ryuk moved away from her and leaned against her railing. "Yeah? So."

"Answer my question Ryuk." Keegan demanded. "I'm not going to let you keep pushing it away."

He clicked his tongue in annoyance. "You resonate a weird aura. It's kind of ridiculous to say but…it's definitely caught my interest."

"Does it bother you that I'm so different?" She asked.

"Does it bother you that your mother told you crying was a sin?" Ryuk asked, avoiding her question.

"Yes." Keegan said suddenly. "I loved my mother but I didn't love the religion being forced upon me."

"You wanted to choose your own religion?"

"I grew up thinking that God was not a benevolent being by the way my mother taught me and from the church we went to. I slowly grew to hate the concept of incarnation, Jesus, and the fact that some ethereal entity so big out there could let so many bad things happen and do nothing to stop them. I did want to choose my own religion: but I didn't want to be Christian." Keegan explained in full detail. "With the short time my mom was alive when I was younger I asked a lot of questions which were often directed back at me with some harsh tone of voice that God might keep me in purgatory for asking such questions."

"Your mother should have been beaten with an oar if she was that bad."

Keegan shook her head. "It was the way she was raised, I guess she wanted to raise me the same way her parent had. I had different beliefs though. So after she and dad died I didn't think much of it. I decided that I shouldn't cry over them because I knew she wouldn't want me to."

Ryuk spat. "I hate the sound of her all ready. Stupid religious fu-"

"I told TJ about the language in the house, you'll abide by the same rules." She cut him off before he could even finish that last word. "You wouldn't have liked her much if she was alive today anyways." She shrugged, leaning down to pick up the Life Script.

"She'd probably try to have the whole house exorcised huh?" He asked.

Keegan nodded. "Yeah. Pretty much. How my dad married her I will never know."

"Luck of the Irish?" Ryuk grinned.

"Haha." Keegan laughed sarcastically. "Now, getting back on topic you're going to answer my question."

Damn it. She was relentless. "You have a vivid memory, don't you?"

"I have that kind of mind." She explained. "What are your interests in my behavior Ryuk?"

"…You're not Light." He said suddenly. "You're just…not Light. That's all. I'm challenged by you." He chuckled. "Never had that kind of issue before. So I'm more than entertained by the way you act." Ryuk of course didn't want to admit that there was definitely something more than odd about why he was so fascinated with Keegan. She was just…He didn't know the word. He could think of it but…She was just so…so shrewd and intelligent and overall she had some emotion to show for it. Light had nothing on Keegan.

_'Not…Light? What's that supposed to mean?'_ "All right, it'll do for now."

"Are we gonna finish watching that stupid movie or not?" Ryuk jabbed his thumb in the direction downstairs.

"…Depends, you going to keep bombarding me with questions about my mom all night?" She asked.

"You're right. We should finish the movie. I still have apples left in my bowl."

"All right, but I have to respond to the SPK first."

--

_"Dear Mr. N,_

_I unfortunately cannot accept your alliance proposal. It would simply be unbefitting of me. Also the fact that my mother always taught me: Never take candy from strangers. So the chance of us meeting in person to discuss this is absolutely at a zero level. My apologies. I do hope you will understand though…that I tend to work alone on a matter such as this. _

_It's my good intention though that as I continue my effort in luring Kira out of hiding that you will be able to pinpoint him, try him, and arrest him to do whatever with him. Until then please do let me know if you have any plans and I may just help you; however I cannot work with you together. We must work as separate parties on this._

'_Til then, I'll expect a response from you at any time."_

"Kuro responded well." Miss Lidner said with a pondering tone. "Kuro's definitely no stranger to being offered handouts that's for sure."

Near was stacking his dice into a miniature city with the Kuro cat chess piece on the tallest tower with the Kira piece a little lower than it. "Hm. Well then, I wouldn't expect Kuro to just accept the fact that we'd like to assist he or she. But Kuro's voice doubts our intentions slightly. Kuro seems conflicted on this choice. I suppose Kuro's only human if they feel that they have to work alone on something like this."

"Kuro's playing a scary and dangerous game with Kira though, it would have been in Kuro's best interest if he just-"

"Kuro could be female, remember that. The behavior pattern of Kuro's miracles seems to be directed at mostly people with loved ones lost, killed, or dead from accidents that shouldn't have happened. I would imagine only a woman would and could feel so strongly about death." Near cut Gevanni off as Miss Lidner crossed her arms with a frown.

"Exactly. I'd digress that Kuro was a woman any day."

"I concur. The question is…is when Miss Kuro will strike next."

"I think she all ready did." Gevanni explained, holding up a newspaper: 'Another blow to Kira's ego by the infamous 'Kuro'.' He opened to the article and laid it out in front of Near.

"Hmm…I see. He tried to kill that little girl she had healed from her cancers and in response Kuro hit him back harder than he had tried to hit her. I wonder why the Task Force in Japan isn't as concerned about Kira getting struck at by Kuro as we are?"

"Because we have an idea who Kira is?" Miss Lidner asked.

"Well, I do. I don't know about you. Then again, Kuro can just lure Kira out for us. And in the end we can publicly credit Kuro for the hard work." He flicked the Kira piece off the dice buildings and watched it fall to the floor as the blank eyes of the black cat Kuro piece stare straight at Near's face.

"Who are you Kuro?" He asked softly.

--

The movie wasn't too horrible to watch. Despite the fact it was terribly clichéd and ridiculous to watch. "Typical 80s." Keegan shook her head, sipping on a can of grape soda.

Ryuk was drinking another carton of apple juice. He had at least 20 sitting in front of him as the film played out. They were still relatively in the beginning of the film when another knock came at the door. "Damn. We just started watching this again and another interruption."

Keegan got up from her seat ad looked out through the peephole in the door. Lo and behold: Joe.

"Keegan…are you home?"

Keegan smacked her hand against the door. "Damn it, Joe. I thought I told you-"

"I just wanted to talk." Her ex's voice said with worry behind the door.

"You want to talk about our relationship. You only came back because of me."

"Of course I did, I really think we have something special together."

"I'm not even done school yet and you're on break! How does that even work?" Keegan asked in agitation.

Ryuk sat up from the seat on the couch and looked at the Life Script on the coffee table before getting an idea. Obviously if Joe wasn't going to listen to Keegan and just interrupt her life periodically he'd have to do something about it. He opened the Life Script and turned to the back of the notebook before he tore a piece of it off.

"This is going to be fun." He got up from the sofa and walked towards the front door. "He's out there?"

Keegan rolled her eyes, glancing at Ryuk before she nodded. "He won't go away." She mouthed.

"I can take care of that."

"How?"

He held up a piece of Life Script ripped out of the notebook. "This…you can rip out pages and use them without using the book. You can conceal the fact that you have the notebook if you don't want to take it with you."

She looked at the piece of notebook paper in his hand. "What are you going to do with that exactly?"

"Remember when you touched the notebook, you could see me. Same goes with the paper."

"No." Her mouth opened wide to silently point out the fact that Joe would be able to see him permanently if he did that. "You can't. Then Joe will think I'm being visited by a demon trying to possess me."

"Your ex-boyfriend seems like a bigger threat than Light right now Keegan. What other options do you have if you want to get your miracle working done in peace?"

"Keegan, baby, open the door."

Keegan's face was livid. "Ah. _Baby?_"

Ryuk held up the notebook paper again. "Shall I dispose of him for you?"

Keegan frowned at the door and Joe's voice on the other side. "I'm serious, you're the only girl that would make me fly all the way from Ireland just to get back together with you."

As loyal and faithful as that sounded: "Do it."

Ryuk easily passed through the door to find a rather well built young man standing on her front doorstep looking desperate to try and get his girlfriend back. Ryuk could see why Keegan must have been with Joe for so long. His emotions were written all over his face. He was one of those crying men. "Seriously Keegan? This is the guy that

He made faces at Joe, knowing that the man couldn't see him, before taking the notebook piece and crumpling it up and threw it at the back of his head. Joe spun quickly to figure out what had just hit him and he found Ryuk waving at him. "….!"

"Oh hey, how's it goin'?" He asked.

"J…J…Jesus Christ!" Joe fell flat on his behind, staring up at Ryuk in horror.

The shinigami gave him a bored stare and scoffed. "Man are you a pansy or what?

"What the hell is this?!"

"Call me a premonition. You get the hell out of here and you won't see your death." Ryuk got in his face and hissed in anger/

Beads of sweat were rolling from Joe's forehead before he scrambled off screaming like a crazy person about a monster or a demon or whatever he was calling Ryuk.

Keegan opened the door to look down the street as she watched Joe run. "When I say we're done, we're done!" She yelled after him. Looking down at the ground she picked up the crumpled piece of Life Script paper and stuffed it into her pocket. "Again, you're being nicer than usual."

"Just shut up and let's watch the movie." Ryuk scoffed, walking back inside before Keegan closed the door behind him. "Thanks."

"Again, 'nother one time thing."

"I'm sure it is."

--

11:00pm at night in Japan, Light was wide awake and staring at the computer screen on his own laptop before recording his 'Kira' message.

_"You…You of all people would dare to challenge Death and deny it with Life. What is your agenda Kuro? As a fellow, 'God', if you can cal yourself that, I ask you: Why would you wish to stop world peace from occurring? Don't you see what you're doing here? You're upsetting the utopia I'm creating by getting rid of every criminal in this world. Why do you torture the world with bringing loved ones back to life? Why do you have to attack me with your 'righteous' blows when I am doing so much good for this world?"_

Light scowled. "Yes, I'd love to know Kuro. Now, I've got a riddle for you."

_"What do you call yourself if you are dead yet alive at the same time? I bet this will certainly have you thinking. It seems to me Kuro…that as you keep challenging me with bringing people back to life…You yourself must be quite dead inside to do so._

_So you think that just because I can't kill the people you bring back to life doesn't make me any less dangerous? How wrong you are. I assure you, keep toying with me it will be the last thing you ever do."_

"Try me again Kuro…I dare you."

--

As the movie progress on, Keegan found herself laughing at the horrible affects of blood and how the zombies moved. "The skeletal ones are all animatronics." She explained. "It's like Night of the Living Dead mixed with Invasion of the Body Snatchers and Aliens (the facehugger theme)."

"Never seen any of those movies."

"I think even you'd be scared out of your skin if you watched Aliens. I know I was." She was eating a coffee cup filled with ice cream.

Ryuk grew silent as the young couple going to some sort of homecoming dance were shooting and flaming at the zombies' heads with a shotgun and a flamethrower. "Keegan…why do you keep me around? It's not just for the apples or for my help."

She put her spoon down into the cup of coffee. "…I don't know. Guess you're just one of a kind thing in my existence that I've ever stumbled upon."

Ryuk stared at the T.V screen again. "Oh…Do you really think we're friends?" He asked skeptically.

"If we weren't friends we wouldn't be sitting here on my couch watching crappy horror movies just for kicks and giggles." She explained logically. "It's as simple as that."

"…You sure are a strange little human Keegan."

"Yeah, I know I am."

--

Authoress note: Aww…wasn't that nice? Sorry no real action this time guys, but wasn't it great just to see Keegan and Ryuk spend some quality time together? Haha. Hope you all enjoyed. Stick around for chapter 16.


	16. Kuro plays dirty

Authoress Note: We're officially at 50 mah peepers! Thanks so much guys. Aw shucks, why if it wasn't for you the story wouldn't be so good. All right, moving on.

Let's line up the great folks who to give a hand to!

Jillian Jiggs: Thanks to her witty banter on Keegan and Ryuk's relationship. And for the record: Yes, yes. He does want Keegan's babies with that sexual tension. He does. I won't deny it. :) Thanks for your support.

Sharnii Brooke: Another Keegan x Ryuk pusher. I'm trying to work on that in a sense. Don't want to rush something like that and have Ryuk too out of character. You know. So patience with these two must be a virtue. As I've said before, if anything happens between them it will happen in small dosages because of my work in writing out the characters. Thanks though for your support and patience.

Sahxyel: To my beloved grammar mole. I'm glad you like how the characterization's coming along. I'm trying hard not to screw Light up but it's quite hard considering I started the Life Script kind of early after L's death (rest his soul in peace). I'm glad you pointed out the flaws in chapter 15, like 12 I just noticed that something was off with it, but it wasn't as bad as 12. Thank you for your typo support! I think from now on you're my grammar consultant.

Michi-nin: Thanks for finding the name of that Madonna music video. I'll be sure to watch if after writing this chapter. Unfortunately I cannot reveal the details of how the story will end to anybody. Thanks for being another Keegan x Ryuk pusher though.

PiScEs-BlOsSoM69: Thanks for the interesting questions on the Death Note and Life Script rules. You can be sure you will begin to see the ups and downs to the Life Script though. Thanks.

Finally,

Syrupdrip: Thanks for support on Lucil, Keegan's kitty, as the mascot. I liked how you said that he wasn't fake and that he was a real, deal, legitimate looking kind of cat. A little rough around the edges but still a sweetie. Did you know that Lucil was a mangy stray that Keegan pulled out of her trashcan when taking out the trash one night? Yep, he was all messed up because somebody didn't love him enough. The poor baby.

All right guys enjoy chapter 16!

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps), belong to me. Thanks._

--

_"You…You of all people would dare to challenge Death and deny it with Life. What is your agenda Kuro? As a fellow, 'God', if you can cal yourself that, I ask you: Why would you wish to stop world peace from occurring? Don't you see what you're doing here? You're upsetting the utopia I'm creating by getting rid of every criminal in this world. Why do you torture the world with bringing loved ones back to life? Why do you have to attack me with your 'righteous' blows when I am doing so much good for this world?"_

_"What do you call yourself if you are dead yet alive at the same time? I bet this will certainly have you thinking. It seems to me Kuro…that as you keep challenging me with bringing people back to life…You yourself must be quite dead inside to do so._

_So you think that just because I can't kill the people you bring back to life doesn't make me any less dangerous? How wrong you are. I assure you, keep toying with me it will be the last thing you ever do."_

"If it's the last thing I'll ever do, then how come it's taking you so long to find me?" Keegan asked. She was grumpy, a little tired, and her eyes were red from staying up handling late night work. Ryuk hadn't exactly been of any help either. Whenever he wasn't poking at her to use the Life Script, he was either asking her more pressing questions or distracting her from sleep.

Miracle working wasn't going well right now. Keegan was feeling some form of helplessness because after the schedule of her classes switched, she basically felt like she had no life anymore. It was terrible and this message from Mr. Yagami wasn't helping.

"You gonna reply to it?" Ryuk asked as he was looking at Keegan hunched over on her computer desk. She had dark circles under her eyes from lack of sleep due to a lot of schoolwork.

"Mmm…I can't. I don't feel up to it. I feel like crap because I have no life and the Life Script seems to be sucking energy out of me."

"Ohhh…I see." Ryuk picked the white notebook up. "Yeah, I forgot to mention to you about how The Life Script can easily turn on you if you seem to be neglecting it."

Keegan sat up slightly with a frown. She didn't look too pleased. "Say…what? And when were you going to tell me this?"

"Right now, the last two months you've been using it frequently now you're using it occasionally. This isn't like a Death Note Keegan. This book can actually feel your emotions. It feeds off them."

"Is that why I feel like crap and guilty at the same time." She asked, burying her head between her arms.

"Kind of. Look, you're tired. I haven't got a thing to do and I'm eating you out of house and home. Make me do something." Ryuk demanded. "I'm sick of waiting around for you to use that damn notebook."

"Do a check in on Mr. Yagami. He's probably having a ball knowing that I'm not interfering with his plans right now." Her voice was muffled, she couldn't see though but Ryuk was hovering over her to get a better look at the disposition of her face, but nothing could be seen. Keegan was exhausted and she hadn't slept well.

"Yeah, yeah. Take your break while you have it. I'll be back." He flew out her open window with rapid speed, leaving a mess of ragged black feathers behind on her desk and bed.

--

"How long has it been exactly?" Light asked staring at the glowing screen of the laptop while Aizawa smoked a cigarette in the background and Matsuda was texting on his cell phone.

"I don't know, but since Kuro hasn't been acting very fast lately, Kira's killings have increased within the past couple weeks."

_'What' the matter Kuro? Do you have a personal life that's trying your time?'_ Light thought to himself as he checked the database for the recent criminals killed. "It's only misdemeanors right now and a few serious offense criminals but-" _'Wait a minute…Someone recently accessed this a few weeks ago.' _Light scrolled down the list and looked at the names of the five criminals that Kuro had resurrected that one week.

_'Someone's recently tampered with this…the system to get at these names. There'd be no way to track a hacker with how busy I've kept the Task Force and I don't have the time…but…maybe that's how Kuro was able to resurrect these criminals. Kuro's not just gifted but talented too. Damn you Kuro. How you hacked into the database I won't find out but at least now I know how you're getting the names and faces.'_

"But what?" Matsuda asked, looking up from his phone.

"But nothing more than that. Did we get any information on that little girl that was healed of her illnesses in the U.S?" Light finished his sentence and started a new topic.

"No, but there have been no signs of the cancers since then and she's been doing great." Aizawa explained. "Little girl can live a normal life now."

"That's good, but nothing but Kuro miracles on regular families that seem to be happening occasionally? No messages to us? Or Kira? Or…any thing?" Light sounded concerned. "The miracle working has just…stopped all together?"

"Yeah…kind of. I wonder if Kuro's laying low to lure Kira out into the open with the killings and resurrect the criminals a week later." Matsuda added in as an idea.

"I think Kuro hacked into the database. Maybe that's how Kuro was able to bring those criminals back." Light speculated. "I mean there's evidence of hacking into the network." Light showed them the database and certain times it was accessed.

"Wow! Look at those times. That's pretty early in the morning hours."

"Which means it would be afternoon here."

"Kuro's hiding somewhere in the U.S and working slowly around the world." Light said. "But why have the miracles stopped all of a sudden."

"I don't know, but I'm starting to miss the rapid miracle working. Maybe something's wrong." Matsuda said sadly.

"It does seem wrong…very wrong indeed." Light murmured. _'Kuro…what are you up to?'_

"Hey. N's streaming a message right now." Aizawa turned the volume up on the computer.

_"Greetings Task Force in Japan. So, L, how goes the Kira case? Any new developments in your side yet?"_

"No, not yet. I can deduce though that Kira must be enjoying the fact that Kuro's laying low though. You've probably heard of Kuro by now, right?"

_"Ah yes. The infamous miracle worker. We've had contact from Kuro recently."_

"You have!" Matsuda exclaimed. "What did Kuro say? Was it about Kira?"

"Calm down Matsuda, it was probably a disk sent to them." Aizawa assured. "Stop jumping at every bit of exciting news. You make me nervous."

_"We recently offered a deal to join an alliance with Kuro. I suspect you might try the same by live streaming it out there on the internet. That's how I assume Kuro received our messages. It's still a mystery though. Tell me L, have you thought on whether Kuro is Male or Female?" _N asked curiously.

"What?" Light asked. "Well…not really. I don't think any of us have at all. We haven't really been trying to focus on Kuro that much right now. Kira's our main concern."

"Well…Kuro has to be male? Right?" Matsuda asked.

"N proves a good point. Kuro could be a woman." Aizawa interjected. "Just listening to how furious Kuro seems at Kira…only a woman could feel so passionate about dealing with death."

"So, have you decided whether Kuro is a man or woman, N?" Light asked.

_"We have. We believe Kuro is a woman. That and the fact that Kuro chose a cat to represent their mascot."_

"Mascot?" Light asked, glancing at the others.

"Oh! Yeah, we forgot to tell you about that." Matsuda gasped. "It's just a message pertaining to the mascot basically. It's nothing important."

"Well, it is now that you forgot to tell me." Light frowned. "Gee, thanks guys. There could be some valuable information in that message that we can't see."

_"Oh? The mascot thing? It's not important Mr. L. It's just a video of a black cat with a white background eating a bowl of canned cat food. The only thing special about it is that Kuro calls the cat: Kuro-neko."_

"Little clichéd." Light rolled his eyes. "What about the stream you received from Kuro? Has Kuro agreed to assist you in the Kira case?"

_"Unfortunately, Kuro has declined an alliance due to reasons of Kuro's own sort. As Kuro said: 'Never take candy from strangers.' So Kuro plans to stay a loner. I doubt that if you ask for an alliance Kuro will accept your proposal. Word of precaution though, I believe Kuro is onto the 'free handout' idea. So be on your guard if your intentions are questions. This is N. Signing out."_

"What do we do Light?" Matsuda asked.

"Well, first we're going to see the mascot disk, and then stream a message to Kuro. Until then not much we can do."

--

"Mmm…" Ryuk inhaled the scent from the bowl of apples through the sliding glass doors of Light's apartment complex. He had only eaten a few apples since his departure from Keegan's but it looked so tempting. He just had to hope Misa wouldn't spot him, hug him, whine where he's been, and walk in when Light was there.

After passing through the door he took a few steps towards the apple bowl before he suddenly crossed a certain scent in the air and heard a familiar voice: Sidoh.

"Hi Ryuk."

Spindly fingers suddenly drew back quickly from the bowl of apples. He was holding one while Sidoh's narrow golden eyes stared at him.

Damn it. He was in a jam. He must have wanted his notebook back. Other than that Sidoh just was a regular pest to him and Ryuk didn't have any concerns. "I don't have time to deal with you." He took the apple and was suddenly through the sliding door and flying through the air. Just when he felt he was safe to eat said apple in mid-flight Ryuk glanced behind him and Sidoh was still there.

"Quit following me!"

"I want my notebook…" Sidoh whined, in mid-flight behind Ryuk.

This demand was no surprise. Ryuk shook his head and sneered. "Yeah? Well things got kind of complicated since you lost it to me. So I've got no idea where it is."

"I'm not too surprised about that. I also wouldn't be surprised that Life Script is gone either. I'm guessing you had something to do with it disappearing." Sidoh asked. "I bet you stole that too."

Ryuk dove down quickly into an open alleyway and landed on a trashcan to start eating his apple. "Look, will you just leave me alone. I've got things to do. I'm on a tight schedule."

"Then give me back my notebook." Sidoh whined at him again.

"I TOLD you, I don't know where it is." Ryuk crunched on his apple to block out Sidoh's voice.

"They're saying you took the Life Script."

He stopped eating the apple. "So what if I did? Do we actually use it?"

"Well…no, but still it doesn't mean that you should have taken it." Sidoh grumbled. "Come on Ryuk, my notebook. I want it back."

"You lost it to me fair and square. Even so I still don't know where it is. I've been busy."

"With the Life Script? Ryuk, you're not the one bringing people back to life are you? The King of Death would be very upset if you did. We're shinigamis…"

"You're such a pessimist, and NO I'm not the one using it." He continued his munching on the apple. "It's in the hands of a good friend of mine."

"Pfft. You have a friend? Somebody that can tolerate you? They've got guts." Sidoh snorted.

"Yeah? Try a human as a friend and you have benefits." He crunched down on the apple harder this time.

"This friend of yours is a human? Seriously? I find it hard to believe Ryuk. Who wants to be friends with you?" Sidoh of course didn't believe Ryuk as usual.

"Who wants to be friends with any shinigami? What shinigami wants to be friends with another shinigami?" Ryuk snarled. "All I can say is this, this human definitely has a damn good longer life span than any other human."

"That's what happens to humans who have the Life Script. Now gimme my notebook!"

"Oh, will you shut up! You want it back so badly, you're gonna have to look for it yourself."

--

After many times of Sidoh following Ryuk around he finally left Ryuk alone after badgering him around for a while and Ryuk could do as he pleased. He had to get back to the task at hand. Keegan had told him to check in with Light. It only seemed right to do so. Upon returning to the complex, Light was there when he returned.

"Hey, you gonna open the damn door or what?"

Light spun on his heel quickly when he heard Ryuk's voice and sneered. "Oh? You've come back? Again?"

"I was told by my benevolent benefactor that I should check in."

"Benefactor? It's funny that you actually have someone you're willing to work for. You know Ryuk I find it rather funny that you just randomly disappeared during the time that Kuro character came along. Tell me Ryuk, are you working for Kuro now that the scenery has shifted?"

"Even If I was…how would you get the information out of me? I have nothing to lose, like I said. I could care less about coming in or not."

Light scoffed. "Typical of you. To go wandering off when monumentally terrible things are happening. I think I'll cut you off completely from apples if you don't start behaving."

"Go ahead and torture me Light. I'm never going to be around for you to exactly get information out of. You'll never find me."

"No. But I do know this." Light held up the Death Note. "There's a book that's been counteracting the Death Note rules and I know that you know where this special death Note is."

Ryuk's brow cocked and he pulled out an apple core he had been consuming while he was getting rid of Sidoh. Ryuk bore his jagged teeth at Light and swallowed the core whole. "I do…but you won't get the information out of me. You can't even use Shinigami eyes to figure out who Kuro is. I know that the fact that you can't figure out who Kuro is starts to frustrate you. Even the very name is getting under your skin."

"I've decided to start getting at criminals more now since Kuro's laying low. That IS probably what Kuro's doing…right?"

"Believe it or not Light, even as Kira you're still human and have a personal life. The same applies for Kuro. So things happen. Look at how limitedly you have to use the Death Note, it's pathetic."

"You're pathetic Ryuk. You're being recruited by your secret benefactor and I think it's Kuro."

"I'll never tell…" Ryuk hissed getting in Light's face. "You can't kill me, you can't use a Death Note on me, and you're at your wits end."

Light threw the Death Note at Ryuk (after he had just come into the room by himself without Light opening the door), who easily ducked to avoid it. "Shut up! You are working for Kuro! That's why you've been gone so long."

"Well…it's hard to say that I am. I mean…Kuro takes good care of me." Ryuk grinned. "But I'm not helping Kuro. Remember Light? I'm not on your side. That goes for Kuro too." What a lie. "But it doesn't mean I'm going to tell you that I'm working for Kuro."

Light picked up the Death Note from the floor and opened it. "You just did."

"Even so…you'll never find Kuro. Kuro's too smart for you. That and Kuro's unpredictable." He grinned. "Like a cat."

Light scowled. "What do I have to do to get the information out of you?"

"You can't do anything Light. It's impossible. Since I have nothing to lose (I'm not like Rem), am being well provided with apples, and don't plan on returning back here for a while…there's nothing you can say or do to get anything out of me."

"I'll double the apples for you."

"You've got nothing Light!" Ryuk snarled. "I've been promised a whole damn orchard! How do you beat an orchard Light?"

Ryuk had a huge point there. If he really was working for Kuro…how the hell could Light beat a whole orchard? But…Light chuckled. "You know…I didn't know how Kuro's original disk messages were getting here…but after I looked over the cameras in the mail room…I saw you on the screens. You were fast Ryuk, but I knew it was you. A little adjusting of certain features and I picked you out on the screen."

Busted. Oh well. Light couldn't do anything. "All right Light. I won't deny I was on camera, but then again, I won't deny whether I'm working for Kuro or not. Sorry Light, I've got other things to do. I'm trying to get another shinigami of my ass for stealing his notebook. Ta-tah." He said.

--

Keegan's head was plastered to the desk and she was in a deep doze by the time Ryuk had returned through her window. He obviously wasn't in a pleasant mood when he returned because he got up on her ceiling and started banging his head against it. "Ahhhh!"

Her head shot up immediately and Keegan was muttering incoherently before finally looking up at the ceiling to where Ryuk was. "Oh…hey. When'd you get back?" She asked.

"Just a few seconds ago. Wanna ask me how my day was?" He hissed at her as though he was her cat. Somehow he'd managed to be able to mock Lucil quite well, since the cat was in the same room and on her bed, Lucil snarled at Ryuk from the pillow he was laying on.

"No. You don't seem to happy." Keegan yawned. "I'm sorry Ryuk. Did he frustrate you again?"

The shinigami dropped down onto her bed, watching as Lucil scurried out the door. "Tell me about it. I think you'll be angry but he knows I'm working for you now."

From her sleepy and sweet demeanor, Keegan suddenly took her shoe off and threw it at his head. "WHAT THE HELL DID YOU JUST SAY?!"

"I didn't tell him who you were! Ouch! OUCH!" Ryuk suddenly found himself being bombarded with random objects as Keegan subjected her fury on him. "YOU SON OF A-" She started yelling some curses in Celtic Irish at him from when she remembered growing up at times when her mother got frustrated. Her mother was often short-tempered and Keegan had unfortunately inherited the same temper, of course this was only due to the fact Keegan hardly had any sleep.

Ryuk took refuge in her closet before she ran out of steam and collapsed on the floor. Her room now looked like a tornado had hit it because of her fury. "Damn, you're scary when you're angry."

She was mumbling incoherently into the floor before rolling onto her side. Keegan lay crumpled into a little heap before Ryuk peered at her from the closet door. It didn't take more than a few minutes before she started crying suddenly.

"I can't stand it!" She sobbed, pulling her arms up to her eyes to hide her face from anybody seeing her tears. "I can't do anything to stop him right now! I'm so tired….I'm so tired! He's out there killing people and upsetting the world and I can't do anything about it! I-I can't!"

He pushed the closet door open and scooted out cautiously, hoping to whatever universal being there was that this wasn't a trick before he actually got a close up look at Keegan. She was really crying this time. It was kind of gross to watch. Humans looked all messed up when they whined and cried. It was so unnatural, but Keegan usually didn't look so stressed out until now.

Light must have been getting to her by taking advantage of the fact that Kuro was 'laying low'. Keegan wasn't laying low; she was busy and couldn't do anything about it. Light could because he was just that way. This was another thing he didn't understand about humans: especially females. They cried a lot and got real moody. Ryuk didn't like the fact that Keegan seemed so upset by the fact she was getting kicked in the stomach basically with Light killing people now that she was slightly incapacitated.

Ryuk reluctantly moved closer to her and let his hand hover over her head before it lay on her shoulder. "…You'll get back at him. Just stop crying. You're making me look like an idiot sitting here."

On of her hands suddenly reached up to take an iron grip on his wrist suddenly as she continued to cry on the floor. "Oof! Ow, come on Keegan. This is not funny. I think you're actually hurting my arm."

"…He's wreaking havoc and I can't help those people. I can't do this by myself." She whimpered.

"Well, isn't that why you got me sticking around for?" Ryuk asked, kind of not wanting to sound sympathetic but it kind of happened. It must have been the tear factor that got to him. _'Stupid girl. I hate you sometimes.'_

Her crying eventually turned to sniffling and Keegan made a muffled noise of protest before she sat up and let go of Ryuk's arm finally. "…Sorry." She muttered, just now realizing that she'd been gripping onto the leather of the fabric he was wearing.

She wiped her eyes on the sleeve of her sweatshirt and sat up straight. "Give me the Life Script." She sniffled.

Ryuk snatched it off the desk and tossed it to her. "What are you doing?" He asked.

She opened it and read down the list of rules and suddenly found a new one sitting there glowing on the inside cover. "Rule #13: A Death Note and Life Script being used at the same time may result in physical pain for both the users if they have the same target. I.E: Writing down a name at the same time."

Keegan sniffled, her eyes slightly red from crying and she look over at Ryuk. "Wait…Were you just sitting there that whole time…with me?" She asked.

Ryuk scratched the top of his head, not really wanting to admit that he was. "…I guess."

There was awkward silence between them: "Let's forget that happened."

"Yeah, sure. Sounds good to me." Ryuk muttered.

"Ryuk…what was that ability you said you had to read Life Spans?"

"It's called Shinigami eyes. Why? You want 'em?"

"No…I want you to use them on Light to figure out the next name he's going to write down. I need you to start spying on him. Find out the next criminals to write down. Can you do it now?"

"Keegan, Shinigami eyes can't read minds." Ryuk said, obviously annoyed by her lack of logic at this moment.

"Well, this sucks then. Maybe I should just go back to crying again."

_'Oh no. Don't. Please.' _"Look, here's a better idea. Hack into the database again and let's try a draw of luck."

Keegan perked her head up. "You want me to try and pick a criminal that Mr. Yagami's going to kill at random?"

"It's worth a shot Keegan." Ryuk shrugged.

She picked herself up and pulled her computer chair out to sit in. "All right. I guess trying wouldn't hurt. I mean…I could just bring them back."

"It's been two weeks Keegan. You've slipped up because of school. You've got to get back in the game. Light knows he's got the advantage right now. You've been down and out. Take back your title. He was insulting you too."

She opened the Life Script and started her hacking. "I need a strong cup of coffee…" She muttered. "I need to call TJ." She sent a brief text message and closed her phone before scrolling down the list of recently arrested offenders and ones that she checked off. Ryuk suddenly pointed to one on the screen.

"That one."

"Why?"

"Because…Light's been wanting to get rid of him for months now."

She wrote the names down on a list and put them to the side. "When should I start writing these names in the Life Script."

"Give it a couple minutes. I just saw Light."

--

The Death Note was flipped open and Light was just now listing down the criminals he was planning on killing in his head. "Kuro's currently involved with other things right now. So…that leaves me time to get rid of certain criminals while Kuro is indispose." He took his trusty pen out and lifted it up.

--

Ryuk's fingers twitched. "It's my Death Note he has, you know that?"

Keegan's brow cocked. "Really? So…"

"It's kind of weird…but sometimes I can tell when he's writing names down. Because a Death Note can recognize its owner." Ryuk explained. "Start writing."

Keegan took her pencil up and did as she was told.

--

The names flowed freely onto the paper of the Death Note and Life Script. At the same time, both notebooks started pulsing. Keegan could feel her wrist getting slightly heavier than usual and suddenly excruciating pain shot through her arm and her head hit the desk randomly. "AAH!"

--

Light's arm snapped back in agony and he fell off his chair, staring at the Death Note in anger. "No way…Kuro must be reacting right now. That's impossible. Damn you Ryuk. You must have told on me."

--

She sat there for several moments before Ryuk poked at her. "Are you finally dead Keegan?"

Keegan sat up suddenly and her eyes narrowed on the paper before she took her pencil and started on the second name. "I guess that means the first name was right."

--

"I'm not going to be stopped by some stupid Life Giver from killing these wrong doers off the face of this planet." Light hissed, taking his pen to the second name. "You got lucky Kuro on that first name. Let's see how the second one goes. You can't know what I'm writing."

--

The writing utensils were flowing onto the paper of each notebook before the pain came again to each notebook owner. Light was thrown back from his chair in Japan. "AH!" and Keegan jerked to the side violently, falling out of her chair and hitting her elbow on the floor in Ohio. "GAH!"

The pain resonating through her hand made her wonder if the book was actually taking its fury out on her from counteracting the Death Note.

Ryuk seemed to be having not a lot of fun watching Keegan suffer pain from this. "You need any help down there?"

"No, I'm fine." Keegan stumbled to her feet and held the notebook in her hand. "Next name."

--

"That does it…" Light said, his breath heavy as he snatched the Death Note off the counter and started on the third name.

This time…

--

Keegan was thrown back and hit her bedroom door hard with her back. "OUCH! God damn it! This book hates me today!"

"I'm guessing Light might not be having a ball either Keegan. You've got two more left. Make Light suffer for what he's done." Ryuk egged her on as she got back up to her feet. "You chose to use this book, make it know you're the boss."

She picked the fallen Life Script up and threw it on her bed, clutching onto both sides of the notebook. "Fourth name."

"'Atta girl…" Ryuk grinned.

--

Light hit the floor uneventfully and yanked himself up just as Misa had opened the door to the room to figure out what the noise was all about.

"Light?"

He took his pen again and started writing the fourth name down.

--

Keegan felt her body jerk forward towards her bed, but she held herself back as hard as she could until her head hit the mattress. At least Keegan didn't get hurt but she wasn't going to let this book beat her up because Light was trying to take the spotlight from her. "…I hope he suffers hard."

--

Misa screamed when Light's head smacked hard onto the floor and he was jerked back and thrown on his back. His face showing obvious fury when he pulled himself up again. "Aaaaaahhhhh!!! Kuro! Not this one! This last one you're not going to save! There's no way you know this last name! No way!"

The pen almost stabbed into the notebook as Light began to write down the last name.

--

Keegan's pencil landed down onto the paper before she started scratching the last name hard into the book. Both writing utensils were moving at the same speed before the name was written down in both notebooks.

--

The Death Note all of the sudden started exploding ink all over the place and all Light could do was watch in horror as the names disappeared. "No…" He whispered. "…It can't be…"

--

Keegan felt violent shocks of electricity shoot through her body while clutching onto the Life Script for dear life. "AAAAAHHHHH!!!!!" before finally collapsing against her bed, the Life Script sprawled out across the sheets.

Ryuk of course had no intention of rushing forwards because the Life Script couldn't have killed Keegan if she withstood its backfiring power like that.

"Well…you're certainly not one to back down from a fight are you Keegan?" He asked, closing the Life Script and pushing her onto the bed before crouching onto her computer chair. "Not bad…for a human."

--

Authoress note: Well…I hope you enjoyed the 'across-the-world' battle scene guys. I do hope that made up for that last chapter. Until then, stay tuned.


	17. Schrodinger's Cat Theory

Authoress Note: All right folks, I think I'm starting to get into a writer's jam here, I think I may have to stop updating the chapters so quickly. Then again I can't not write them. It makes me feel like the story shall die if I don't. Meh. All right folks, it seems chapter 16 had a nice popular vote. I see the Notebook battle caught everyone's attention. I'm glad to know that everyone really liked the violent aspect of the battle. Heh heh, 'Rock

'em Sock 'em Notebooks!'

Okay then guys; let's line everybody up. Reviewer recognition time (again)!

Jillian Jiggs: Thanks for always being a self-proclaimed Keegan x Ryuk supporter, and the fact I've possibly given her a personal form of a mental crack pairing. Haha. Just kidding. I'm glad you like the battle of the notebooks! I do have to admit, best part in the last chapter. Thanks.

Sharnii Brooke: As my school song quotes (yeah my school has a song…it's embarrassing) 'Loyalty and love for thee'. That's Ryuk right there: 'loyalty and love to Keegan'. Though everybody knows he'd never admit he had feelings for her. I can just imagine a little therapy session going there. L is the psychiatrist with the little halo over his head in the chair with assorted sweets and Ryuk lying on the couch. Haha. Emotions do influence the Life Script.

It was made with emotions by a shinigami, so it's only fair that it feeds off the emotions of the user. Thanks.

Michi-nin: Thanks for laughing your ass off at Light suffering in chapter 16. I think everybody here will have to agree that the Notebook Fight scene was the best part of the chapter. I'm glad you thoroughly enjoyed that. So I think I might have the notebook fights happen more often. Thanks.

Sahxyel: Thanks for being my little grammar mole (I say mole because nazi is not a nice word I like to hear, say, or write) and always providing personal insight into the characterization, plot, and the story over all. It's always great to have you help me out with the story when I'm in a jam. I liked the idea you proposed with Light's Crazy Kira Cult; of course I think I might change it up a little bit but kind of follow that line of it in a sense. Don't worry Light manipulating people will be no problem at all. Also on another note: Keegan actually getting those names right was pretty lucky-ass coincidence. So the probability that Keegan will get names right again won't be big but then again…'divine' intervention could occur. (cough cough) L's ghost maybe, I dunno want to know what you think first. (cough cough). Thanks for all your help though.

Syrupdrip: Will review soon, whether it's for last chapter or this one, I thank you too!

Anyways guys, enjoy chapter 17.

--

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps) and others, belong to me. Thanks._

--

"So, I got your text and it read 'bone city' for some strange reason when you were outside the door of my house." Keegan stated, holding up her cell phone to TJ a he presented her with a cup of Starbucks coffee.

"Oh yeah, I got booty last night." He grinned.

Keegan rolled her eyes, obviously displeased with his whole 'victorious' behavior. "Obviously it was mutual sex?"

"I used a condom! I don't want any diseases! You miss out Keegan. You never even got it on with Joe." TJ added.

Ryuk's head turned quickly to look at Keegan who glared at him from the side. "Guess Joe wasn't that special at all huh?"

She kicked at his legs from the chair he was sitting in, knowing TJ wouldn't notice.

"OW!" Ryuk hissed.

She shook her head and held her hand out for the cup of coffee. "Enough don't give me the details. I don't need to know that and let's not talk "

"I got you a Caramel Machiatto because that's what you usually get whenever we go there. Damn girl, you look like somebody beat the living hell out of you or something. What happened?" TJ asked, obviously concerned as he handed her the container of coffee.

"Well, my classes this morning involved one of the girls being a little more or less hung over. So when I disagreed with her on a certain note she flipped out, told me to eff off more or less and got into an altercation with me. Everyone knows I didn't start it. So she was given grounds to remove herself from the campus and I got off easily." She started sipping the drink slowly. "You even put sugar in it? That was nice of you."

"No, stop. Really, you love me. You know you do." TJ said, obviously hoping to bask in her good mood.

"Wow Keegan, I've got to hand it to you. You make up really believable lies. I mean that's the best one I've heard yet." Ryuk cackled from the chair he was sitting in.

'_I'll kick you again. You know I will.'_ Keegan thought.

"So, you got morning classes now. It must suck." TJ frowned. "Sorry about that. I mean, seriously. You look like you have no life after your schedule changed. I don't see you leave our house anymore."

"I'm a very busy woman." Keegan explained. "I've got resumes to type, reports to write, articles to review, I'm a worker TJ. I think I'd prefer a job better. I have to finish school first though."

"How goes the still-life photography?" TJ asked, petting Lucil under his chair. "Mi familia, they say you're crazy to keep this black cat in your house. I mean, my dad went so far as to call it 'gato de diablo'."

"It's just because Lucil's an alley cat." Keegan frowned. "And your dad's not nice to me anyways."

"Because you're whiter than Asian white." TJ defended. "That weirds him out. That and the fact that all of these miracles are happening. You heard of that serial killer in Japan. He's got every criminal on his or her toes. And not just there in Japan: Worldwide too!" TJ sounded quite concerned. "Keegan…something's weird. I mean…really weird. This serial miracle worker that brings people back to life. I think someone's messin' with this serial killer, girl."

Keegan bit her lip. TJ was worried about her, as if he was her own brother.

"I'm scared you might get killed off next. This serial killer might stop killing criminals and start on real people this time. He's got my mom lighting every damn candle in our house, hanging up the Holy Mother pictures, and getting crucifixes in every room of the house."

"TJ…I'm not going to get killed."

"Keegan…are you going to tell him?" Ryuk asked.

'_What choice do I have? I can't work all alone on this. TJ feels the same way about saving people too. He's Catholic but he's just…so against God when it comes to people dying.'_

"Keegan, people are dying all around the world because of this guy. Even criminals here are dying…" He murmured softly. "Keegan…Polar Bear." He whined calling her by her signature 'white' nickname he had come up with for her.

"TJ, what if I told you…that Rico didn't just come back to life because of any miracle worker?" Keegan asked softly, pulling her chair in.

TJ gave her a skeptical look. "I'd say you were high on something and that the second coming of Jesus is happening."

'_I have to…but…TJ would never believe me.'_ "Oh. Well, never mind. It's silly." She chuckled. "I was just kidding."

"Well damn girl, you sure did have me going there. All right, I'm rolling out." TJ pulled his car keys out. "I'll see you later." He patted her shoulder and strolled out the door. "Bye Keegan."

"Hey, drive home safely." She called after him.

He waved at her and closed the front door. Keegan looked kind of sad for a few minutes before Ryuk threw the chair he was sitting on and crouched on her table. Lucil went scurrying off meowing with fright after Ryuk had terrified him with the chair incident. "What the hell were you doing?!"

Keegan shook her head. "I thought I might want to get some help on this but…I can't bring TJ into this. He's got a big mouth and would blow it in an instant."

Ryuk smacked her in the back of the head. "You stupid girl!"

Keegan pounded her fist over his hand sitting on the table. "Ouch!"

"Don't hit me, Ryuk. I'll punish you. You know I can."

"Yeah, but every time you say it you never do it. What are you getting a soft spot?" Ryuk asked. "That's not like you."

"Look will you just-"

Keegan didn't get to finish her question because there was horrible crashing sound outside and she looked out her window to see TJ's hand-me-down pick-up truck hit broadside by Joe's Diesel Ford Pick-up. Joe obviously was screaming something at the poor unconscious Latino boy, because he was in the front seat of his car beeping his horn.

Her mouth opened slightly and Keegan suddenly bolted from the house, wrenching to door open. Joe had just gotten out of his car,

"Keegan! Thank god, I almost hit your house thanks to this-"

She suddenly conked her ex-boyfriend in the face with her fist. Joe hit the ground and Keegan rushed to the passenger side of the vehicle to yank the door open and shake TJ. "TJ! TJ! Can you hear me?" His air bag had deployed and he wasn't looking too well because he had a little bit of blood trickling down the side of his head.

Ryuk of course couldn't believe what he had just seen. That Hispanic kid had just left this house without provoking anybody and her stalker ex-boyfriend had just shown up like this out of nowhere and attacked him? Some how it felt wrong for Ryuk to care, but this guy had messed with Keegan enough. It had gone from annoying whining, the harassment, to stalking, and finally to attempted murder of one of her friends. That was the last straw. The next thing he knew, Joe would probably try and kill Keegan and Ryuk would be without an apple provider and someone to put Light in his place.

"I knew it…" Joe muttered from the passenger door. "You've been with this stupid kid this whole time, haven't you? That's why you won't get back with me."

She pulled out her cell phone. "Shut up Joe! Get out of here before I get the cops to arrest you."

His hand clamped on her wrist with the cell phone in her hand. "You're not calling anybody!"

"This is my friend, he's hurt!" Keegan snarled. "Get off or I'll make sure you'll regret it!"

"You left me for this stupid 'spic?!" He pulled her out of the car.

"He's my best friend! I'm not in a relationship with him you idiot!" Joe slapped her suddenly after her response.

Well, that certainly had done it. Ryuk's patience came to end. His blackened wings burst from his back and he bolted towards Joe with a snarl.

"Don't give me that!" Joe sneered. "You're a liar!"

Keegan sent her knee to Joe's stomach before she was able to get away, only to watch Ryuk suddenly slam him into the side of his own truck and draw back.

"Didn't we have this discussion pal?" The shinigami hissed.

Joe got to his feet, not knowing what had hit him until he saw Ryuk again. "Wh-Wh-What the hell!? You again!? I thought I drank too much that night! Are you for real?!"

Ryuk diddn't give Joe an answer, he just stood there glaring at him with red eyes before Joe finally took off.

Keegan of course, ignored the two as she rushed to TJ. "I need the Life Script. GET THE LIFE SCRIPT!" Keegan screamed at Ryuk from the passenger side as she called 911 on her phone.

She'd probably thank him later, but if she were as upset as she seemed about her friend here then he'd have no choice. Ryuk went back to the house to get the Life Script for her.

"_911 what is your emergency?"_

"I need an ambulance on West Eli Avenue in Jefferton, it's about 10 minutes away. I'd like to report an attempted murder by a Joseph Kindler. He tried to kill my friend in a road rage incident. My friend's unconscious and I need an ambulance ASAP. Please, I don't know if he has a concussion or not. He was just driving off in his car." Keegan explained.

"_All right, we'll send an ambulance and police right away."_

"Please hurry." Keegan closed her phone and tried to use a towel located on the passenger seat to try and wipe the blood from TJ's forehead. Ryuk was prodding Keegan in the back with the Life Script.

"Here, here. Just don't expect any pity if it doesn't work."

"Why wouldn't it work?" Keegan asked, snatching it from him as she started writing TJ's name down in the Life Script. "Take it back inside, I don't want him to see it."

--

About an hour later, TJ was being taken off to the hospital while the police searched for Joe. Keegan gave the officers pictures of him and he'd be run through the system. Despite the fact that he was going to school in Ireland, Joe was still here for a week and he wouldn't be able to catch his flight any time soon until this week was up. His behavior would give his University grounds to expel him and Keegan would never have to see him again.

Keegan waved to TJ as they closed the doors and he of course didn't understand how he was still alive. As Keegan turned back towards her house, Ryuk was sitting on the front step with a livid expression; he was gnashing his jagged teeth in agitation. "I take that back about him being a pansy Keegan. He's a freak."

She stood in front of him with a small frown. "TJ didn't deserve to be put in that situation. I hope Joe plans on spending a long time in jail because TJ's family will press charges. I know they will."

"…How did you end up with him in the first place?" Ryuk asked, not really wanting to talk about the whole 'Joe' situation but he'd figure to ask anyways.

"I don't even remember. I just know we graduated High school together and were with each other for a while. I don't know what happened to him." She shrugged.

"He got cocky." Ryuk sneered.

She nodded. "Yeah, probably." There was silence between them. "Hey Ryuk…thanks." Keegan said sincerely. "You know, for defending me."

"I did it for the orchard." Ryuk muttered.

"Sure you did." Keegan chuckled, going back inside to find the Life Script on the kitchen table glowing again. She opened it to see if anything was wrong with it and found nothing. "Hm. Must be my emotions it's feeding off again."

But it wasn't because of Keegan the Life Script was glowing-it was because of Ryuk.

--

"Wow Light, you look a mess." Aizawa pointed out as Light was drinking a cup of coffee on the office sofa.

"I didn't have such a great afternoon. I kind of got upset thinking about my father. To top it all off a pen exploded somehow on the carpet at home and I had to get a steam cleaner to get it out." Light explained. "The Kira case isn't getting any better either."

"You're telling me. Not only does it seem like the Kira killings aren't being deterred but it seems as though Kuro's gotten back into the game."

"Yeah. I mean, on the news a few days ago some criminals in the database in the cells started having seizures before they stopped. The police though that they were being killed by Kira, but they're still alive." Matsuda was changing the channels on the T.V.

"I wonder if N's trying to connect Kira and Kuro together somehow. It seems a little odd though. We can bring about that Kuro and Kira are two different people. There's no way that Kira would just want to bring back to life a bunch of criminals if he's that crazy."

"Even your father would attest to that." Aizawa lit another cigarette.

"Are you ever going to quit smoking?" Matsuda asked. "It's bad for you."

"I'd rather let cancer get to me than Kira." Aizawa chuckled.

"Well, maybe Kuro will bring you back to life." Matsuda laughed heartily.

"All right guys, enough joking around, these are serious people we're talking about here. I mean Kira, a serial killer and Kuro a serial saver." Light sighed. "I mean we've got to act professionally on this situation."

"Well, we sent the message to Kuro just a few days ago. It's only been 3 days tops, we should probably just wait. Kuro's probably busy, maybe even trying to keep N and the SPK off her tail."

"We still don't know if Kuro is really a woman though guys. That's just SPK speculation."

"Well until we figure it out, I'm just going to hope Kuro's a woman." Aizawa and the rest of the force chuckled while Light rolled his eyes.

"That'll be the day."

_'You'll have to answer both Kira's message and the Task Force Message Kuro. How are you going to work that out without slipping up? You've been sly so far but you'll mess up this time. I know you will.'_

--

"The miracles are in the U.S…mainly." Near murmured, playing with his puzzle set again, this time it was the blank all white puzzle instead of the one with the kittens. "So, we can assume that Kuro is located somewhere within the U.S, is female, and…has a profound sense of opposing Kira."

"That's correct." Miss Lidner explained. "Is it possible that we can rule out where the first miracle occurred?"

"Of course it is. We'll just run a name system through the database and find out the names and faces of the people that Kuro has recently saved. I want that done right now."

Gevanni gave a nod to Near and gave orders to begin database searches. Most of the saved people were in the hospitals. They were admitted there shortly after being brought back to life.

"What was the first miracle?" Near asked, looking up from his puzzle.

"An 8 year old girl. Name's Cameron Simpkins. She was admitted to St. Agnes Hospital a year ago for leukemia and bone cancer treatment." Gevanni explained as they looked at the smiling picture of the pale little girl with her blue bunny hat on.

"What state was this in?" Near asked suspiciously.

"Ahh…Ohio. Close to a little town called Jefferton."

"About how many people are in the population of this town?"

"A little over 3000 sir. Why?"

"This is the place where the miracles started originating from." Near murmured. He played with that little strand of hair by his ear in contemplation and gave a small smile. "Well, at least we know now that Kuro's definitely within the U.S."

"Do you actually think that Kuro lives in this little town here?" Miss Lidner asked.

"I do." Near nodded. "But as Kuro told us…she'd like to work alone. I still would like a chance to meet with her in person. I suppose we'll just have to wait and see where the next miracle occurred."

"I don't think we'll have to look far sir. Right in that very town on the street of West Eli Avenue two young men were involved in a traffic accident. Police are looking for the hit-and-run suspect while the other is in the hospital. When they got the victim to the ER their medical reports are in saying that he had no injuries that could be seen and was relatively healthy. He's recovering from shock right now." Gevanni explained.

"Any name for the victim?" Near asked.

"A Tito "TJ" Juarez." Miss Lidner said.

"Well then, I suppose we may just have to get a chance to speak with him about what happened. Otherwise I believe we're getting closer to Kuro." Near pushed his little chess piece closer to the Kuro Black Cat piece on top of the dice towers.

"Kuro's not hiding from anybody but Kira. So Miss Kuro is fair game for us to speak with."

--

_"To my most hated enemy,_

_Hello Kira, I see I've proceeded to frustrate you even more in your endeavors to rid the world of all evil in it. Allow me to enlighten you on my agenda. See, by killing every criminal in this world you're potentially upsetting the flow of balance; the symbolism of yin and yang. You cannot live in a world without darkness and you cannot live in a world without light._

_You're riddle is a waste of time, and does not interest me. However your answer is probably a 'vampire' while mine is the Schrödinger's Cat. How you ask? Well…since I am very much like a cat you really don't know if I am indeed 'alive' or 'dead' on the inside. My hiding place is like the imaginary box Erwin Schrödinger placed the imaginary cat in. You'll never know if you can or can't find me. It's a mystery._

_As of right now I'm pretty sure that you're in a lot of pain after our battle between Life and Death yesterday. I'm surprised you're still standing. Know this, I'm not going to be down and out again for a good while. I'll make sure to keep you on your toes until then. For now, watch your back. When you think you're in the clear you be careful, for I am the cobra lurking at your feet waiting to strike._

_This is Kuro bidding you, goodnight."_

"Kuro's back." Matsuda stared at the screen with his mouth slightly agape. "H-Hey! Kuro's back!"

"Kuro's returned? Is this another joke Matsuda?" Light asked, taking another sip from his cup of coffee. "I'm serious, the last time you played a joke on us it wasn't funny."

"I tried, okay." Matsuda frowned, kind of bowing his head in epic defeat. "But I'm serious! Look."

They had gathered around the laptop to view the message before it had shut off. "Well, Kuro's certainly not too pleased about laying low for a while. I guess the plan to lure Kira out of hiding didn't work so well." Light said, looking at the screen in contemplation. It was taking a lot of guts to stand there and listen to Kuro mock him and bring in not only the answer Light had to his own riddle but also Kuro's own answer.

"Do you think that N and the SPK are getting closer to figuring out who Kuro is?" Aizawa asked.

"Of course they are. Even if they do find out who Kuro is, they certainly won't be giving out any names anytime soon." Light sighed. "I guess it's to protect Kuro's identity from Kira, it seems only right. Until then we'll just have to keep working closely with the SPK and N on Kira."

--

"Mister Juarez?" Gevanni said, looking at TJ's medical chart attached to the hospital bed.

Near was standing with Miss Lidner while there were police officers outside the ward TJ was in.

"I swear to god, I'm legally 18 and the porn on my computer isn't illegal!" TJ shouted suddenly taking much fear on his face as soon as Miss Lidner presented him with a business card.

"Oh." TJ calmed down as he took the card.

"Mister Juarez, we're with the local police investigation team on the events that occurred earlier today. How are you feeling?" Miss Lidner asked.

"Well I feel like I got hit my a truck ma'am. But now that you're here I'm feeling _much _better." TJ raised his brows suggestively before Gevanni gave him a stern glare.

"You're very pretty." TJ said, changing his words while fiddling awkwardly with the bed sheets. "Ah, yeah. What about it?"

"We're here to ask you some question son what happened." Near informed.

"I'm agent N." Near introduced himself to TJ before he was given a rolling office chair to seat himself in.

"Seriously, man?" TJ asked, looking at the fake business card. "Ohhh…I get it. You're all top secret and you must have been up late last night on a secret case so they brought you out here in mid-daylight in your jammies." TJ nodded with interest. "Okay, cholo. That's cool."

"Mister Juarez-"

"TJ, please. Everybody calls me TJ." The young Latino boy explained.

"TJ it is. Now I understand you were involved in a recent vehicle accident that could have claimed your life today." Near explained, staring at TJ's medical chart with interest. "You had no injuries when you got here."

"I don't remember what happened exactly, I know that I left my best friend's house after bringing her a cup of coffee from Starbucks. I walked right outside and got into my truck. I checked my mirrors, I buckled my seatbelt, I pulled out and I saw my best friend's ex-boyfriend in his huge-ass ford pickup come at me from nowhere."

"Your best friend? How long were you at his-" Gevanni was cut off in mid-sentence.

"She…It's a girl, dude." TJ corrected. "My best friend Keegan I think saw the whole thing. I know she was screaming at me to wake up. I could hear her voice yelling at me and then she was yelling at her boyfriend. I couldn't see anything, I was in too much pain. Next thing I know she's screaming somebody else's name to get something and I felt the pain go away. I think I passed out, but when I woke up paramedics were wheeling me in the ambulance and Keegan was waving at me." TJ explained.

"Does Miss Keegan have a last name?" Near asked.

"Are you guys really cops? I don't want Keegan to get in any trouble." TJ asked with concern.

"We'd just like to speak with her, I understand the police apprehended her ex-boyfriend?"

"Yeah, they got his ass locked up. He tried to kill me because he's a crazy mother fu-" The nurse tending to TJ gave him a glare from the other side of the room and he shut his mouth. "…He's crazy. He's been harassing Keegan for weeks. First through emails, then text messages and voicemails, and he even came all the way back from Ireland on break from the University to try and get back together with her. She tells me everything. Heh. She's like my mom."

"And you don't know how you arrived here with no injuries?" Near asked.

"No. I think that it's divine intervention though. I mean my parents visited me a few hours ago and my mom had lit every damn candle in her house and my dad was yelling at me in Spanish about being thankful I have a lot of faith in God even if I don't go to church all the time."

"Her last name…" Gevanni growled.

"Oh, Keegan. Keegan Louise Phelps. Now tell me, if I let you go to talk to her you will make sure that you have her call the hospital as soon as you get to her house because if I don't receive a call to my room, I can get some of mi familia to do some good work for me to make sure that she's safe." TJ sounded serious.

"Is that a threat?" Miss Lidner asked in irritation.

"It involves the safety of a girl that basically behaves like my mom. It's promise, ma'am." He pointed.

Near nodded. "We'll be sure to do as you've asked of us. No questions asked. Thank you Mister Juarez."

"TJ!" He yelled after them as they left the ward.

As they walked down the hallway, Gevanni had wrote down everything on TJ's medical sheet. "Nothing. Not even a bruise. Just a mild bump to the head and he seems fine."

"Miss Phelps must have been the only one to know how Mister Juarez was able to recover the way he had from this divine intervention." Near mumbled. "I think we may be getting closer to Kuro."

"You don't think someone we haven't met yet is…" Miss Lidner began.

"It's unclear…but I do." Near answered. "We'll need directions."

--

Her brows furrowed when she suddenly heard a knock on her door. "Put the game controller down." Keegan pointed to Ryuk as he sat with the Life Script under the couch cushions.

The shinigami dropped the game controller as Keegan approached the door. "Good god, more cops. How many more interviews do I need to give today?"

She opened the door to find the SPK agents standing on her doorstep. "Miss Phelps?" Near stated in a rather curious tone.

Her pulse sped up. _'Something's off here…' _" Yes? I've allr eady given at least 14 statements today, TJ's parents are pressing charges and so am I. How may I help you?"

Gevanni's tone was firm as he stood by Near. "We need to speak with you about Mister Juarez's miraculous recovery."

_'God I am never going to church again.'_

--

Authoress Note: Dun, dun, dun! Does Near know that Keegan is Kuro? Will she be in any trouble? Find out in the next chapter of The Life Script!


	18. The Binding Contract

Authoress Note: Wowee guys! It's just about Christmas and you all know what that means? No? Aww…Man, I didn't want to have to tell you…Shoot. Well I guess I have to now. All right. Since it's about Christmas I may have to hold off on quick updates. I'll be busy opening presents and I want to have time to play with all my fun gadgets I'm getting this year. I, Hatter-chan, hope to whatever God there is that she's getting a pair of Dolce and Gabana sunglasses because if I don't I will be quite unhappy and be possibly sad. Waaahhh. Otherwise I'm praying for Guitar Hero! Yay! So Merry Christma-Hannuka-Kwanzaa guys!

All right then, reviewer acknowledgements. Unfortunately guys I just now realized that the reviews I reply to go directly to my email…which I'm not supposed to use because I'm forbidden from using it anymore (nobody ask me why because I'd not like to discuss the issue, thanks). So I'll be answering you guys from the Reviewer Acknowledgement section of the chapters. My apologies guys.

Sharnii Brooke: A new rule…(eerie spaceship themed music) We shall see, muahaha. Oh yeah, I think everyone will now agree that Joe should either be run over with TJ's messed up pick-up truck, beaten up by Ryuk, or just plain hit by train in general. The most painless thing would be to remain in jail for life though. Oh well. I guess we'll see what his judgment is in this chapter or the next one. As for Near figuring out Keegan being Kuro…she's not going to let him get that answer easily. She might…but then again she might not. I actually have NOT seen the Death Note Live action film (only in bits and pieces) but I can tell you that I know how the movie ends and it is a lot different than the anime. Of course I only plan to watch it because of how well, yet kind of crappy, Ryuk was CGI-ed into the movie. Thanks.

Jillian Jiggs: Aw, silly. You know that Ryuk would just deny that it would glow with love. (sings) MY EVERLASTING….LOVEEEEEEE. I shouldn't be allowed to sing in the Authoress Note/Reviewer acknowledgement section…ever. I could sense your withdrawal symptom just as soon as you said: 'I've felt like crap all day'. Cracks do that to people. O.o It's true. Look what it does to Ryuk in the Death Note Live action movie when he asks Light for an apple and Light's totally ignoring him 'cuz of the cameras in the room. I love that scene where Ryuk just starts banging his head against the ceiling like: 'AAAHHH!!!' It's so great. Oh, no. If Near were to immediately say: 'You're Kuro' then things would not go well and Keegan would slam the door in their faces, lock it, and we'd never see her again. Thanks.

Sahxyel: I think Ryuk might keep Lucil, Kuro-neko, occupied if Near's in her house. I think Ryuk all ready knows that if Lucil came anywhere downstairs Keegan would not be able to feed him anymore apples for a while, but then again with my story having little plot bunnies in it…you may never know. I find that true, when I'm typing my chapters it's only AFTER I've finished and updated the chapter that I see the mistakes and I go: 'Oh eff my life…' Out of curiosity and just for craps and giggles: How much would you pay for a Light 'wtf' face? I'd pay like over 200 bucks for that…because I'm broke and don't have that much money to spend. Hahaha. Thanks.

Syrupdrip: You're back! Yay! I'm glad you loved the battle scene since everyone else did too. I think that was the best thing about Chapter 16 anyways. Actually, Keegan getting those names right wasn't coincidental; it was just really dumb luck that played a factor in that. So the next time she and Light do a 'Rock 'em Sock 'em Notebooks' battle Keegan will only get like two names right. I never understood the Shrödinger's Cat theory until one of my teacher's explained it to me and I read Hellsing over again. I will bring in some extra help for Light, but it won't be an exact Kira Cult. Perhaps just Mikami and Misa. Otherwise yeah that would be a good idea. Thanks.

Michi-nin: Keegan's going to be very discrete about the situation that happened with TJ so if Near does suspect that she's Kuro, he wouldn't have any physical evidence to prove she is, but that wouldn't mean he still wouldn't know that she was Kuro. Even if he does find out, she's not doing illegal things, she's not hurting people, and she's not committing crimes. They can't arrest her and even if they offer her protection she'd refuse (they can't make her because she has every right to choose). Exactly, Ryuk knows that he like wants Keegan's babies but he's trying so very hard to hide the fact. I think that it doesn't really matter, I don't think the Kira supporters should say OMK because Kira may be a god but he's not 'GOD'. You know what I mean? Erwin Schrödinger was a very brilliant man; he was able to make a theory without exactly performing it. That's how smart he was. Thanks.

PiScEs-BlOsSoM69: I'm not Near's biggest fan, but I learned to tolerate him after L died. I for one hate Light with a passion and with every episode I was just waiting for someone to shoot him. I prayed it would be Matsuda and my wish came true at the end of the anime series. Yippee! I almost peed myself with laughter because Light was bleeding all over the place in the anime when Matsuda kept shooting him. It was the best ending of in an anime ever. You can even parody it without people getting mad because it was that hysterical. Thanks.

Enjoy Chapter 18 guys!

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps) and others, belong to me. Thanks._

--

Cops. Keegan never really was fond of the police driving through her neighborhood. She always used to remember when the police cars came to arrest the driver that had killed her parents and how they took her into custody after her stay at the hospital when she was little. Keegan also didn't like being so close to them because she actually had to bail TJ out of the pen when he'd been wrongly arrested on false charges of possession when he was actually carrying a bag of crushed up Cocoa Puffs to take home to his baby cousin Rico who was beginning to eat solid foods now (that was months ago though). All TJ did was crush the cereal up so that when he fed it to Rico the poor child wouldn't have to chew on the pieces (Rico just started getting his baby teeth) and would just have mushy gloops to swallow instead.

"Can I get you guys anything?" Keegan asked casually. "Tea, coffee, soda, juice?" She offered. "I don't want to seem like I'm being a bad hostess." She explained.

"How thoughtful of you Miss Phelps, but no thank you." Near answered. "We were told that you were to call Mister Juarez after we got here. He was quite adamant about it."

Keegan shrugged. "He's just worried about me. I don't blame him, I mean my ex-boyfriend tried to kill him and practically tried to assault me." She picked up her cell phone and dialed the hospital room. "His parents came by and gave me the number to his room. His mother was hysterically crying to me in Spanish." Keegan chuckled. "Bless her heart."

"Hey TJ, yeah they're here. I'm fine. Okay, thanks. Bye bye." She shut her phone and placed it on the counter. "How can help you guys?"

"Miss Phelps, we're with the investigation team regarding the events that took place earlier today. We'd like to ask you some questions about Mister Juarez's accident and his quick recovery." Gevanni explained. "Would you be able to describe anything unusual?"

"I'm the master at seeing unusual things. My house has poltergeist." She said humorously.

Ryuk of course was not there to pester her about how she was making fun of him. He was upstairs busying himself with poking fun at Lucil. He'd cornered the cat in the bathroom and seemed to be entertaining himself by watching that cat claw at him from inside the bathtub.

"Miss Phelps…" Near said, obviously not well amused by her comedy. "Please, the events of today."

"I'm sorry…I guess I'm just trying to make myself feel better after what happened today. I'm still a little shaken. I guess…it would have to start with the blood on the side of TJ's head. It started to seep back into the wound and the cut healed up on him. He was still unconscious by the time the bruises on his body started disappearing, so I was just as surprised as him when he woke up on the stretcher as they put him in the ambulance." Keegan opened the refrigerator and took a can of orange soda out.

"How long would you say your ex-boyfriend has been harassing you, Miss Phelps?" Miss Lidner asked.

"Months…No. A little longer, right after we broke up he kept calling my phone while he was in Ireland, telling me how much he missed me and wished I was there with him." She shrugged, opening the can and sipping out of it. "I didn't miss him though."

"Miss Phelps, we're going to get right to the point here, after Mister Juarez was admitted to the hospital he arrived there without any injuries and his health was exceptionally well. Do you know why that is?" Near asked curiously.

"No. I think that there must have been an angel or something there at his side while I was trying to get him to wake up after calling 911." Keegan explained, shrugging. "I'm not really a fan of God but today I think I must have said over 200 Hail Mary's in my head." That was an obvious lie. Keegan wouldn't pray even if someone paid her to.

"Would you consider yourself an angel…Miss Phelps?" Near asked, his hands folded calmly.

"…What does this have to do with the investigation?"

"Somehow, Mister Juarez recovered from his injuries by divine intervention. There was no one else with him but you. The precinct handling your ex-boyfriend also found bruises on his body after the attack on Mister Juarez." Gevanni elaborated for Keegan, his brow cocking in suspicion.

"I punched him in the face when Joe got out to give me his excuse for how he almost hit my house, then he grabbed my arm and tried to pull me out of the car, he struck me, and I kicked him in the stomach." Keegan gave her accurate testimony because there were witnesses next door who saw it too. "You can ask the neighbors, they saw everything."

"You didn't hit him in the back? He had torn ligaments and a large bruise in the shoulder area." Near said suspiciously.

"You think I asked someone to beat up my ex-boyfriend?" She asked, making it seem as though she thought they were ludicrous.

"We're trying to figure out if Mister Juarez's recovery was due to miraculous events." Miss Lidner told her. "You didn't see anything but his wounds suddenly disappearing?"

Keegan nodded. "Yeah, that's about it." She said. "I'm sorry I can't offer anymore information."

"Did you tell any of the other officers what you saw earlier?"

Keegan nodded again. "Yeah, I gave fourteen statements. Even to a news group, but I didn't want to be filmed or anything. I don't like having my picture take now days."

"Miss Phelps, do you live alone?" Near asked suddenly, completely ignoring the answer she had given.

"I live with my Aunt Carol. I have for the past 12 years. I'm a full-time college student. My schedule revolves around morning classes. After I get done with school I plan to work in journalism and still-life photography. Why?"

"No reason. Just thought to ask. You're aunt wasn't present at the crime scene today. Why was that?" Near stated, cautious about how Keegan would answer next.

"She was doing some early Christmas shopping. December's all ready here. She's not wasting any time." Keegan chuckled. "Bless her heart."

"What about your parents?" Keegan frowned at this next question.

"My parents were killed in a car accident 12 years ago. I don't like talking about that subject much. I'll ask again, what does this have to do with the situation about TJ? If it doesn't have to do with anything, I might have to question you guys about being cops." She sounded annoyed.

"We're a special investigation team with the authorities." Gevanni cleared his throat.

"All right, then explain to me why you're special agent here is in his pajamas." Keegan pointed out to Near skeptically.

"I work nights and sleep days. They woke me up for this case. I apologize if I'm not dressed in proper attire." Near said sincerely though he was lying. "Truly, we didn't mean to barge in like this if our interview is making you uncomfortable."

"Every interview today has been uncomfortable. Everyone's been asking me questions all day and I want to know if my ex-boyfriend is staying in prison for a long time because no one will tell me. This is a man that tried to kill my friend and everyone just expects me to be calm." Keegan pointed out, obviously angry now.

"We're just trying to rule out suspects besides your ex-boyfriend." Miss Lidner advised.

"Well Joe's the only one that could have done it because TJ's aunt's ex-boyfriend is in prison for attempted murder of his baby cousin."

"And that was divine intervention as well." Near added in. "They found the baby alive in the funeral home."

"TJ called my phone crying hysterically that day. Anything else you guys would like to know? Because now you're snooping."

This was absolutely puzzling. Near wasn't really getting anywhere with his questions and Miss Phelps didn't seem like the type of woman to talk after bad things happened. Her attitude towards the personal questions was suspicious but Miss Phelps hadn't any criminal record and she seemed to be a levelheaded young woman that just got caught in the middle of a bad situation between her and her ex-boyfriend. "Thank you Miss Phelps."

"Are you guys sure you don't want anything before you leave? I've got plenty of sodas in the fridge and it's really just me and my aunt here by ourselves. We don't usually get visitors, guests, or police at our door." Keegan offered once more before these agents went on their way.

"Again, we thank you for your hospitality Miss Phelps, but we've got to be going. Thank you for your time."

"Yeah, no problem. Least you guys didn't make as big a fuss as the cops before did. I appreciate that."

Lucil's angry hiss sounded from upstairs and Gevanni watched as Near stopped before he reached for the front door. "What in the world was that?"

Near paused and turned his head briefly to indicate where the noise came from. "Miss Phelps, do you own a cat?"

"I do." Keegan answered. "He's probably trying to protect the house from poltergeist." She explained, watching at Lucil poked his head from between the railing bars on the way down from the steps. He sat there warily as Near looked at the cat's face from afar and nodded. "Ah. I see. Well, I wish him luck then. You take care now."

Her door handle turned just as Ryuk had floated down the stairs to get a good look at the situation. "Oh…Keegan. You let them in the house…Stupid. That's the SPK."

Keegan felt a lump jump into her throat and she coughed slightly.

"Miss Phelps, one more question, regarding the events of divine intervention. Have you noticed anybody in your area recently being brought back to life?" Near asked.

"I heard about that little girl at the hospital having no signs of cancer her system. I know that was divine intervention." Keegan explained. "Plus the little girl said on the news that she saw angels talking over her."

"All right, maybe we'll talk to her perhaps. Thank you Miss Phelps. Tell Mister Juarez to try and not get into any more accidents."

They left and Keegan looked back at Ryuk who was shaking his head at her from the stairwell. "Do you think they know?"

"I think that they might now that Near saw Lucil." Ryuk growled. "You're starting to get sloppy Keegan. Watch yourself."

She sighed in exasperation. "Joe just tried to kill TJ today, Ryuk."

"How can I be so calm when I don't know if Joe will go to jail or walk free? If I die it means you won't get to go to that orchard and I can't take care of you anymore. How am I supposed to provide for you if I die Ryuk?" Keegan snapped.

Ryuk was taken aback by Keegan yelling at him so emotionally and in such fear. "I'm scared Ryuk. I used to not care about Joe harassing me, but he tried to kill TJ and he hit me. He HIT me. Which means he could have and would have killed me if he wanted to."

"If he had done anything he would have been in pieces on the ground Keegan." Ryuk hissed nastily. "He's lucky he only got some bruises and that I let him run away alive."

"You didn't have to protect me Ryuk, you even said you're just in this for the apples. Like you always do. So you could have let him-"

"Well I didn't, did I?" His golden eyes glowered at her. "I accepted your thanks, now shut up about it. I don't want to hear Joe's name ever again." His teeth gnashed together before he turned his back to her and proceeded to harass Lucil again. "Go on! Get out of here ya mangy flea-bitten cat!"

Lucil clawed at Ryuk several times before he took off again. "The subject of Joe has bothered you since I first told you about him Ryuk, what is your problem?"

"My problem is that you practically just walked your identity into Near's trap." Ryuk snarled. "You practically almost handed yourself over to the police. Police that could have given your name out to Light."

"That's not like you to care what I do Ryuk. You've been acting funny and I'm concerned." She put her hands on her hips in anger.

"Why should you be concerned with what I do Keegan? I told Light that I wasn't on his side and I also mentioned to him that just because you were my benefactor didn't mean I was on yours either." Ryuk snarled, he bore those harp teeth at Keegan who could only shake her head at him.

She stood there in silence with Ryuk before she felt her voice quiver. "You lied to him to protect me…Now you're lying to me to protect yourself." His head perked up and he cracked his neck before turning to look at Keegan with those large round eyes. "Again, why do you care what I say and do?"

She threw the couch pillow at him and went for the stairs. "Because you're my friend and I care what happens to you!" She yelled down the stairs as she ran up towards her room before slamming the door.

He stood there in dismay and banged his head against the wooden railing. "Gahhhh…stupid, stupid, stupid, girl."

--

"She seemed like she was trying to avoid our questions." Gevanni stated as they drove back in the limo.

"Yes…she was, but she answered them." Miss Lidner shook her head. "That's the point though. Right?"

"Odd little cat she had though. He looked angry." Gevanni pondered.

"That was the cat from the Kuro message sent weeks ago." Near said suddenly. His head perked up.

"What's the probability of people with one-eyed cats in the U.S?" Gevanni scoffed.

"There's probably a very small percentage." Near curled that particular lock of hair by his ear around his finger. "But…I believe that is Kuro's cat."

"You don't think that girl is Kuro, do you?" Miss Lidner asked. "I didn't see any cameras or a computer anywhere."

"We'd need a search warrant to look wouldn't we?" Near mumbled. "But she has no criminal record, we shouldn't try and treat her like a criminal since she's done nothing wrong. Bringing people back to life is not a crime…it's a saint's deed."

"Kuro's not just Kira's cancer…she's a saint." Miss Lidner said.

"If Miss Phelps is indeed Kuro, we shouldn't give her reason to feel threatened. The fact is we've spoken with her and I have my intuition." Near stated. "Kuro must be a very intelligent woman, otherwise Kira would have been able to locate her and have her killed a lot faster."

"What do we do until then?" Miss Lidner asked.

"We don't have actual proof that Miss Phelps is Kuro besides the cat, other than that we shall just have to wait and see when and where the next miracle occurs. A majority of them seem to be located in the area she lives in, even going so far as to reach out in other states to perform miracles, even to Canada and European countries such as England. . Other than that, we have no real evidence to prove she's Kuro. We'll just have to interview some of the most recently well known miracle cases and get statements." Near stared out the window with a bored expression, casually fiddling with one of the chess pieces in his pocket.

"And if we find evidence that she is Kuro?" Gevanni asked.

"Simple, we leave her alone an let her go about her business. She's clearly not stupid and didn't feel threatened by the fact that we were in her home. We also cannot determine if Kuro's personality is the same as hers. So we may have to pay Miss Phelps another visit." Near hummed to himself in contemplation.

"She might not like that, she could actually report us for harassment. I think she's had enough of that all ready." Miss Lidner sighed. "Poor girl. I do hope that ex-boyfrend of hers stays behind bars. Just looking at the pictures of him you wonder if he's a ticking time bomb."

--

He hated this pattern they were starting to develop whenever she got upset with him. Ryuk was locked out of her room once more and he was hitting the back of his head against the door in agitation. Of course he was providing Keegan with quite an annoying ruckus.

"If you don't get away from my door-"

"You know, these games of 'lock yourself in your room' is really getting to me Keegan." Ryuk grumbled in annoyance. "You always do this when you get upset."

"Well, considering the fact that you obviously don't care about my feelings is reason enough for you to leave Ryuk." Her voice was muffled into a pillow from inside.

He tapped his spindly fingers against his knee while trying hard not to submit to this new habit of gnashing his teeth. "…If I wanted to leave I would have gone all ready."

"You still can. You've had the power to all along."

"There's a difference between wanting and waiting. You know?" Ryuk snapped. "I just can't make up my mind because of you."

"Well why would I hold you back?" She asked, obviously just biding her time until he just left her alone all together.

"…Because you're the only one who tolerates me." Ryuk mumbled his answer in reluctance. "But, then again it's probably just out of pity."

"Pity is for those who are attention seekers." She informed.

"Are you one of those people Keegan?" Ryuk was poking at that tender subject on the topic of her parents again.

"You're kidding right?" He felt pressure on the other side of the door and could only assume that Keegan had her back to it.

"No, but it seems to be quite a problem that you haven't cried since two weeks ago when you got upset over Light adding salt to the wound because school was taking over your life." His chin was in his hand as he watched Lucil glaring at him from the corner of his gaze.

"You're trying to get me to cry over my parents who have been dead for 12 years Ryuk, it's not going to happen. They're dead, there's nothing I can do about it." Keegan pounded her fist on the floor. "Cut it out!"

"You're haunted by some silly thought that your mother's spirit might try and drag you to hell if you do start crying over her and your father. That's what you're worried about Keegan. You may be agnostic but it doesn't mean that you still have some haunting faith left behind in you. The fact is Keegan, you need to get your emotions together and stop acting like a kid with them." _'I'm lecturing her? Oh what is this world coming to? I think I'm losing my mind.' _Ryuk cracked his neck to make sure he could recall what he just said. He had just lectured Keegan on how to live her life. _Now_ there was definitely something wrong with him.

"You're giving me a speech on life Ryuk, when you're a shinigami. Shinigamis aren't supposed to tell people to live good lives. They're supposed to take them."

All right, she was calling him out as a hypocrite, so what? He'd always been a hypocrite as far as he could remember and Keegan pointing out that he was one didn't really matter. "If I wanted to take yours I could have…"

"And why haven't you?"

He wasn't about to let her know that right now. It wasn't right to tell Keegan why. Ryuk just couldn't. One reason was because he felt indebted to her taking care of him and actually tolerating him as long as she had, another reason was because she wasn't like Light. Keegan just had that odd aura about her that he couldn't help but feel drawn to. She wasn't like any other human on this wasted planet. She was selfless and a giver, never wanting for more or less.

Light on the other hand: everything was 'every man for himself' and mindlessly trying to rule over a world that didn't deserve to be ruled over in the first place. This struggle between Kira and Kuro really was a battle between good and evil. "I told you before, because you're not Light."

"But what is that supposed to mean?" She stood up and faced the door. "Why won't you elaborate more on why, Ryuk?"

"When a shinigami agrees to allow a human to use his or her Death Note, there's a contract written within the power of the Death Note." Ryuk explained. "With Light and my Death Note, it says I get to write his name in the Death Note when it is his time regardless of whether he wants to die or not. The Life Script's contract is different." He was hunched over in a kind of bundled up position to hide in case she came out of the room to hurl expletives at him or other objects of unpleasant nature.

"Well what's the binding contract of the Life Script?" She asked. "…It's a double edged sword." He muttered, hoping she'd just drop the subject. Of course Ryuk knew Keegan better than that. Once she got started on something she didn't stop.

"What do you mean?" Her tone was seriously concerned. "Ryuk, tell me."

That tone of her voice just got to him. He amolst cursed her for being so persuasive towards him without even trying. "If Light kills you with my Death Note, The Life Script will force me to bring you back to life. There's no loophole in it. No one is allowed to take your life Keegan while you possess the Life Script. Even if I wanted to kill you I couldn't…and…I don't want to."

Her hand rested on the door as Ryuk explained the binding contract of the Death Note and the Life Script. "What happens to you then?" Her voice broke suddenly, hot tears welling up in her eyes. Ryuk chose to be stuck in this position of the binding contract with the Life Script. Even if he hadn't meant to when he first dropped it by accident, he still took responsibility and had been tolerating the contract? That was brave of him. He didn't want to but he selflessly submitted himself to the contract for his own reasons he wouldn't tell her.

"The rules of the Life Script are unclear about my fate. I imagine that The Life Script will sacrifice itself after you save me so my life is not taken in the process." He shrugged, his tone sounded depressed in a sense. "It all depends on you Keegan. It depends on the user, and you're the current user."

"Why do you keep with the contract of the Life Script then Ryuk? You don't want to clearly. Why would you do that?" Keegan sounded like she was pleading for answers now. She sounded fearful that he might just die on the spot all of the sudden. "Tell me!" She snapped through her tears.

"Because you called me your friend."

He heard a loud 'thump' noise behind the door and he immediately feared the worst as though she'd actually hurt herself. Ryuk entered the room without really being asked to find Keegan in a crumpled heap on the floor sobbing uncontrollably. _'Oh man, not this again.'_ But this time she wasn't crying over something stupid because she was stressed it was because-

"Don't die on me Ryuk! I don't want to lose anyone else…I don't want to lose anyone else I care about." Hot tears poured down her cheeks as she proceeded to hide her face from him.

He couldn't look at her right now, not while she was crying over him. It was kind of unbearable because he'd get upset if he did. What could he do now? She was clearly distraught and it looked like him leaving the room wasn't an option. It might have been because her crying was getting on his nerves, but Ryuk had to muffle it somehow.

She felt the wood of the floor suddenly be replaced by cool leather and she felt her cried being muffled by the fabric of Ryuk's coat she was nestled against while he sat there in a clearly uncomfortable position.

"…Yeah, yeah. It's all right. I get it Keegan." He said, trying to keep her quiet.

He kept hearing muffled versions of 'I'm sorry' a number of times before she started mumbling something incoherent about her parents and going to hell. "Over my broken wings." He muttered, letting his chin rest in his hand with the other patting her head.

"This was not part of my schedule today."

--

Rule # 14: The Life Script has binding contract in it. The shinigami that gives it to the human user is forced to protect the user with or without the shinigami's own consent. In some cases, the shinigami willingly protects the mortal user of the Life Script. In the end, if the mortal user of the Life Script dies the Shinigami must bring that human back to life with the Life Script (failure to do so results in the shinigami perishing with the human user of the Life Script).

The Life Script glowed softly underneath the protection of the couch cushions before the glow faded away and it lay there safely hidden from the world.

--

"Misa…I need your help."

--

Authoress Note: I hope you all enjoyed that chapter, don't worry some well deserved action will happen in the next installment. I promise! But anyways…Wishing you a Merry Christmas Eve folks, good night.


	19. This is Roy?

Authoress Note: Hi guys! Hope you all had a wonderful Christma-Hannuka-Kwanzaa! I know I did. Santa treated me very nicely this year and I'm quite happy about it. Thanks guys! We're almost at 70 reviews now, let's try and get a 100 for The Life Script this time! Whoot! We can do it guys!

Reviewer Acknowledgement Time!

Demi-Crow-Sings: It's certainly been a long time since you've been around. I was wondering when you were going to catch onto the fact I was going somewhere with just those 10 simple rules to begin with. Hahah! Yush, yush! Bask in the glow of not 65 reviews, but 69 now. Muahah! Just kidding, glad to be hearing from you again. I hope you enjoy the story as much as everyone else has.

Jillian Jiggs: Damn, the crack of the story must be addicting or else you wouldn't have spontaneously burst into song on your review. Ahaha. Ah, well, but you know Light. When in doubt, call Misa or Mikami to do your deeds for you. Keegan will have a lot on her hands. That and the fact that Ryuk's basically expressed unintentionally that 'he wants her babies'. XD

Sahxyel: A Merry Christmas to you my favorite grammar mole! Did you get everything you wanted for Christmas? I sure did! Actually, with the Life Script it's different. Say for instance, Light killed Keegan and Ryuk didn't immediately have 'saving Keegan' on his mind.

The binding contract of the Life Script would force him to bring her back to Life, but if he didn't willingly want to he would have to die with her. It would be a double-edged sword on Ryuk's part because he would die too if Keegan died. His life span is kind of connected with Keegan's. But if he did save Keegan's life with the Life Script the Life Script would be destroyed because that's what it's usually used for (saving human lives) but if Keegan used it on Ryuk as he was dying it could be destroyed in return for Ryuk's life being prolonged. Of course you never know what I have in store…so I'm not telling you what I plan to do. Nyah nyah. Thanks for the question though.

Sharnii Brooke: Ryuk didn't want to hug Keegan, but he knew he had to because she was crying over him. _Him _of all people. You have to admit, even Ryuk would be surprised that somebody actually gave a hell about him. So what else could he do but comfort her? Teehee. Then again, that's how love works I suppose. Thanks.

Syrupdrip: I gave the same sort of response to Sahxyel and I'm glad you asked that question. See Ryuk would need to be saved, because say for instance he snatched up his Death Note and all of the sudden wrote Light's name in it. I don't know what would happen because Ryuk could either die or not if he was prolonging Keegan's life. You do remember of course that The Death Note's binding contract involves Ryuk having to write down Light's name in the end, but if he HAS to write down Light's name because when the end is near he would be both saving Keegan's life and killing Light when he time came. The Death Note wouldn't know what would be on Ryuk's mind because it doesn't feed off emotions like the Life Script does. If Ryuk saved Keegan's life with the Life Script nothing would happen to Ryuk and Keegan wouldn't be dead if Light tried to kill her. The rules of the Life Script aren't exactly clear on the binding contract because love is actually intertwined into this sort of situation with Ryuk and Keegan. So the Life Script being destroyed will be complicated. Oh yeah…Near and Keegan on a "date"? Haha, I can see Ryuk being really happy about that (not). Of course they could just call her up and be like: 'We need some clarifications' or whatever. Thanks for asking.

PiScEs-BlOsSoM69: Of course! I got a great pile of stuff for Christmas! Best Christmas for me ever! Haha. I'm glad you liked how the chapter turned out. Happy Holidays to you. Thanks.

Enjoy Chapter 19 guys!

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps) and others, belong to me. Thanks._

_--_

Her dreams were blank as she slept. Keegan hadn't even realized she had fallen asleep until her eyes opened to the blinding sunlight in her face from her window. A hand went up to shield her eyes and Keegan sat up from her rather comfortable pillow. From behind her-

"Ohhh…" An unpleasant groan.

Keegan's head spun to look at Ryuk rubbing his head. "You never stop moving in your sleep, jeez." He grumbled, cracking his joints back into place from resting in such a crooked position.

"Wait…what?" Keegan asked him, her brow cocking suspiciously. "How did you end up-" She didn't get to finish because Ryuk sat up with incoherent muttering.

"Yesterday? The crying? You wouldn't shut up about it. The fact that I could possibly die?" He explained.

It all came back to her then, Keegan slapped her forehead. "Oh! That! Oh…Oh God, Ryuk. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to embarrass you like that. Good god that must have been so awkward and-"

"Yeah, well…shit happens. No big deal. It's done and over with." He said quite plainly, without much bother to his voice. Ryuk was just waving it off like it wasn't a big deal. Wow. Weird.

Keegan looked at her alarm clock on her nightstand and read the time on it. "Noon? Shoot. I missed a class this morning…wait…it's Tuesday…so…"

"You don't have class today." Ryuk muttered, pointing at her calendar. "You got it all marked down for the next three months."

Keegan got up from the bed and flipped through it. He was right. "When did you look at my schedule?"

"Last night." He was scratching the top of his head trying to remember exactly. "Yeah. Last night."

"And you've been on my bed since then?" She asked, a little annoyed with the fact. "You know that's not permitted right? You're not my cat."

"You weren't complaining when I muffled your crying yesterday." He snickered.

"Oh, that's funny." She laughed sarcastically as she headed for the door. "You're hysterical! Ha, ha, ha, ha, HA."

"I know I am." Ryuk responded casually. "You owe me, you know."

"For what? Pretending to be my knight in shining armor?" Keegan rolled her eyes while she left the room.

He followed of course, Keegan never knew him not to follow her around the house. "What are we doing today? More crime fighting against Light?" He asked.

Keegan casually walked over to her Playstation and turned it on, hooking up the Guitar Hero controllers to it and tossed him one. "Nope. I don't have to worry about him right now. We can goof off today. He's probably rolling around in his little emo corner trying to figure out how to bite at me next?" She shrugged.

Ryuk looked down at the controller with confusion. "So…"

"We're just gonna play Guitar Hero until then." She chuckled. "Why so serious Ryuk? It makes you look funny."

The shinigami didn't know what to think right now, his mind was kind of blank and he had just spent the night making sure that Keegan didn't cry anymore over him. There was something wrong with him today and he didn't like this feeling. "Hey, where's the Life Script? Same place as yesterday I assume?"

Keegan put her controller down and reached under the sofa. The notebook felt relatively warm and she opened the inner cover to find Rule # 14 etched into it. Keegan skimmed over it briefly before she looked up at Ryuk. "It's like what you told me yesterday…"

"Huh?"

"About the binding contract." She held the notebook up to him and Ryuk scratched the top of his head while looking at it. "Oh. Yeah…right." He said awkwardly. "Coincidence really."

"Yeah, I'll say. Are we gonna play this game or not? Put the guitar controller around you all ready. I'm bored." Keegan whined.

"Yeah, yeah. Just shut up, I'm working on it."

"You ever played this before?" Keegan asked while she began scrolling down through the song list until she'd picked one. "Ah. My favorite."

"I've observed others playing it. So, I'm sure I can handle it."

"All right, I picked 'Message in a Bottle'. I like its tune, it's nice, kind of subtle, and there's no screaming in it."

Ryuk shrugged. "Makes sense I suppose. It's your game Keegan.""

"I don't like loud noises. They put me on edge and I often wonder if someone's breaking into my house. TJ did that once to scare the hell out of me." Keegan said, choosing the song. It didn't take long for it to start and they were playing the game.

It was clear to see that Ryuk wasn't clueless when it came to this game. "Did you think you could beat me at a video game Keegan?"

She shook her head. "Well, you unlocked almost everything in Ratchet and Clank that one morning when you were bored as hell while I went out shopping for groceries. So, I wasn't expecting to win either."

It wasn't hard to play Guitar Hero, but damn was she doing a good job of keeping up with him. "Damn it Keegan, do you ever give up?"

"Nah…I told TJ, I'm a worker. Even in video gaming." She chuckled. "Sorry I'm making this difficult for you Ryuk. And the game's set to Easy mode."

"You suck Keegan." He snapped.

"Gee Ryuk, thanks. This is great friendship banter." She said sarcastically.

"I wasn't kidding, you do suck. My points are higher than yours." He argued.

"It's game Ryuk, calm down. " Keegan warned.

He scowled at her and she gave him this obvious look that said she wouldn't let him have lunch if he was going to behave like a sore loser if she won. "Hey…"

"What?" Ryuk asked.

"Why did you end up sleeping in my bed?"

He paused the game. "What?"

"Yeah, last night. What was up with that?"

It never really occurred to Ryuk why, but Keegan had fallen asleep after crying for about 45 minutes. He counted how long it had taken her to finally shut up. She must have obviously wanted to get a lot out of her system if she had cried for that long. "You fell asleep Keegan. If you would have seen how much time passed by while you were crying…You basically wore yourself out. What was I supposed to do? Leave you on the hard wood floor?" He grumbled out reluctantly.

"Well, no. But how'd you end up in my bed?"

"In case you started crying again I could try and shut you up. Let's get off this topic now, I don't want to talk about it." He tried to start the game again, but Keegan paused it this time.

"Talk to me." She demanded.

"No." He refused.

Keegan paused the game again when he tried to start it up once more. "Stop doing that!" He snarled.

"I will when you tell me what's wrong." Keegan said with a mischievous grin.

"You're pissing me off Keegan, are we gonna play this game or not?"

"You care about me Ryuk." She grinned.

"I do not, now un-pause this game." He ordered.

"All right, well if you don't care about me. When's my birthday?" She asked.

"October 12, 1987." Ryuk snapped very quickly before he'd realized when he had said. "…Damn it."

Her brow rose with a frown on her face. "Don't care about me huh?"

"Just because I know you're birthday doesn't mean anything." Ryuk snarled.

"Sure, sure. I get it. Trying to hide the fact that you enjoy being my friend. I understand." She nodded, "It's fine Ryuk. You don't have to admit it."

"Admit what?" He scoffed. "That's we're friends? Or that I have weird feelings when I get around you?"

That last part he hadn't meant to let slip out. Ryuk twitched and closed his mouth.

Keegan's head turned towards him with a funny look on her face. "What?"

"Nothing."

"No, go back to that last part: What weird feelings?" She asked.

He didn't answer her, but when she wasn't looking he un-paused the game. Her fingers were quick and she caught his movement. "KEEGAN-"

"What…weird feelings?" She asked.

Ryuk glared at her in agitation before he muttered to himself.

"What…?"

"…I have strange _feelings_ when we're near each other. I don't know whether to like them or not." He managed to strain out.

All right, so now Keegan felt bad for pestering him about what was wrong, so in response she put the controller down and went into the kitchen to heat up something in the microwave.

"Hold on."

Minutes later she came back out with a steaming mug of what appeared to be something that smelled exactly like apples. Hot apples…Ryuk inhaled the scent and Keegan placed the mug in his gangly hands. "Here…I shouldn't have badgered you about this. Careful. It's hot." She warned.

"What is it?"

"Cider. Apple Cider. It's not apple juice, it's better."

Her hands were warm from the mug; he felt it as she handed the delicious smelling apple drink to him. "Oh…um…thanks Keegan." He mumbled.

"You're welcome." She said, patting him on the shoulder. "Take the guitar controller off I don't want you spilling anything on it."

He set the controller down with the mug still in his hands while Keegan went upstairs to get dressed. Obvious he sensed how awkward she must have felt about the whole argument they had just had, so he left her alone in response. Forgetting that the drink was hot though-

"AAH!"

"…What did I say about it being hot?"

--

"You want me to…what?" Misa asked, as Light stood at the kitchen counter not looking at her. He was too focused with staring at his own Death Note. "You need me to help kill more people again?"

"As the 2nd Kira, Misa, you have a duty to fulfill to me. As the first Kira. You do like making me happy don't you? When you help me out it always puts me in a good mood." Ha, as if. Everything Misa did was annoying even the way she worshipped him. But with her as such a loyal lapdog it wouldn't make sense to get rid of her.

"Oh, of course! You know I do, because I love you!" She squealed. "My darling, of course I'll help you. "

There she went again, calling him darling. That was a big peeve he hated, but Light had grown to tolerate it eventually because he knew he could control Misa at every angle. "Lately I've found myself challenged by this unknown nemesis that calls themselves 'Kuro'."

"KURO?" Her mouth opened wide and she sounded appalled by the tone of her voice. "How dare they try and copycat you!"

"It's not a copycat Misa…it's the exact opposite of what I do. This Kuro proclaims they're justice against me for the criminals I kill. It's Kuro who is wrong in this world Misa. Not me. Please…if you love me you'll do this for me?" Light pleaded softly, grasping her hands in his. "Use your Death Note to start punishing criminals to strike back at Kuro. Send messages to Kuro as the 2nd Kira for me…Do my will?"

"Ohhh…Yes. I will." Misa sighed happily. "Anything for you!"

'_Good. Now all I have to do is wait for Kuro to take Misa's bait as the 2__nd__ Kira and Kuro will have to give up after realizing that he can't face two Kiras, let alone more if I count Mikami.'_ Light thought to himself, this would be very interesting to watch.

--

"All of these saved people were all on the news. Kuro must have been getting the names off the internet or from watching the news in the evenings." Gevanni tossed a folder of medical records Miss Lidner. She in turn handed the documents to Near.

"I've all ready seen those. They're all the same, like Mister Juarez's was after he was admitted to the hospital. Healthy. Nothing more than trauma from the events that had transpired when these people were killed." He mumbled something before he pushed the Kuro Cat Chess piece close to some anonymous white pieces on the chessboard. "Kuro saves those who die too young or were murdered when they didn't deserve to be. This includes the criminals that Kira kills."

"Which means?" Gevanni asked.

"It means that Kuro works from the safety of her own home and looks up the name, somehow either on the news or the internet and counteracts Kira that way." Near answered plain and simple.

"But how did Kuro know how to bring back those criminals in the Task Force database system that Kira had all ready killed?" Miss Lidner pondered.

"Simple computer hacking skills. Skills that involve a step-by-step process. Hacking skills that teach someone how to not get caught. When we were reviewing through the Task Force Database there was evidence that someone had hacked into it from a computer in the U.S. The Task Force hadn't figured that out because they're busy trying to figure out the Kira case. They're too busy to worry about hackers." Near divulged just from what they had reviewed over.

"So, Kuro takes advantage of the Task Force while they're down and out?"

"Exactly, but how Kuro would even know about the Task Force is a mystery. She has an inside source."

"Who though?"

"Divine intervention." Near chuckled.

--

"The serial killer known only as 'Kira' in Japan appears to have started his rampage again as criminals in numerous countries appear to be dropping dead here and there. The killings are still coming as we are speaking on the news this evening. It is unknown how many criminals are in the death toll. This is Kelsey Jillons from Channel 8 News, signing off."

Keegan turned the t.v off and frowned at it. "Ryuk, how many lapdogs does Mr. Yagami have?" She asked curiously.

"There's Misa, who's basically his little pet that does everything he commands her to, and then there's Mikami who's a little more or less just like Light only he wants to serve Light as his right hand (Misa's not his right hand)."

"So how many supposed Kira's are there?"

"There's been a few. Some are dead now and the rest are just Kira fanatics." Ryuk shrugged, sitting next to her. He sounded kind of funny because he was trying to speak without his tongue occasionally popping out of his mouth because it still stung from the burn. "Owwww…"

"You have a really bad tendency to burn yourself on hot foods. Was it worth it?" Keegan asked while she scrolled through the Task Force Database and suddenly found an outgoing message recently sent to 'Kuro'.

"Oh…absolutely." Ryuk hummed in content, apple cider definitely was better than apple juice.

"Oh hey. Well, look at this." Keegan chuckled, opening the message file in her video player.

The white screen that popped up had a black 'L' in the background. "Anymore Letters of the Alphabet I should know about?" She turned her head towards Ryuk, who seemed to be trying to antagonize Lucil again. "Hey." Keegan nudged him. "I'm talking to you."

"Huh? Oh. Yeah, see there was this original member of the Task Force and his alias names were Ryuzaki and L. Light took over the name 'L' and calls himself that to conceal his identity from threatening party members and from the SPK. But Near all ready knows that." The shinigami explained, watching as Keegan listened to the message. There was no point in really continuing it since it was really Light talking about negotiating some alliance and Keegan's response was picking up her camera with a chuckle.

"Hey, piss Lucil off for a second."

"Seriously?"

"I need his angry face to tell the Task Force to plainly and simply to forget any negotiations or messages with me." Keegan told her plan to him, while she leaned over Ryuk's lap and held her camera up to Lucil's hissing face before filming him hissing and clawing at the camera.

Ryuk of course was displeased with Keegan invading his personal space so rudely and he pushed her off after she was done. "Hey, hey. Watch the personal space here, I'm still trying to get rid of the human germs I caught last night."

"Wah, wah." Keegan mocked him in a sarcastic whine. "That's all you do lately. All right, all right. I'm sorry. But Lucil's face was perfect."

"How did you end up owning him Keegan? I mean…you could have picked a nicer cat." He suggested. "Why him?"

"He was in the dumpster in the alley when he was a practically a baby. I couldn't leave him. So I kept him." She said, uploading Lucil's angry video to the computer and etched a digital message above Lucil's head that read clearly in chatspeak: 'NO, Kuro-Neko iz not PLZD (Which would be in proper English, Kuro-neko is not pleased)' in big bold white letters above his head. She had made sure to film only Lucil's face and not the background around him.

"Oh…I see. Had to save him off the street?"

"I love cats." Keegan sighed sadly. "I was supposed to get a Scottish Fold kitten for Christmas when I was 14 from my Aunt but that didn't happen and instead I got Lucil just a few years ago."

"What the hell is a Scottish Fold?" Ryuk asked, cracking his shoulder bones slightly before Keegan looked at him in disgust.

"It's a breed of cat. Ohh…Gross, do that often?"

"Yeah…I can contort myself in many different positions too when my withdrawal symptoms get bad." So there were some downsides to having apple withdrawal. "It sucks. Light used it as an advantage to coax information out of me or if I didn't do as he had asked."

"Oh, you poor baby." Keegan said in a pouting voice. "He was mean to you."

"I get it, you're mocking me. You can stop now."

Keegan was laughing several moments later before she composed herself and sent the message to the Task Force. "Well that settles that. Oh! I promised Aunt Carol I'd go grocery shopping today." She rushed off the couch suddenly and found Ryuk at the front door when she came back. "No…you have to stay here. I have a new apple dish I'm going to make today and I don't want you to be getting any mischievous ideas while we're in the aisles at the store."

"Aw, damn it. You're not any fun." Ryuk crossed his arms in front of him with a clearly noticeable scowl.

"Cheer up, you're getting fed either way. So stay here. Otherwise I'll have to punish you." That said, she grabbed her purse and left. "Be back in about a half hour."

The door closed on him and Ryuk found himself staring at the thick white door with a frown. "What am I suppose to do until then?" He whined.

He glanced back at the Life Script on the coffee table in the living room. It had started glowing again, when he flipped it open he found yet another rule starting to etch its way onto the inner cover. "You've got to be kidding me. Two rules in one day?" He asked.

When the book stopped glowing, he picked it up. "Rule # 15…" As his golden eyes skimmed over the page he had to stop himself for several moments and do a double take. "Say what?!" He snapped. "Oh, no. No. No. No. It's bad enough I have to share everything with her now, no. I'm not going to do it just because the rule says I can (not that I will)." He stared hard at the words on it before the book started glowing in his hands in agitation. He threw it on the floor. "Look, you. Just because she owns you right now doesn't mean you have to pick on me while she's gone."

The book's glow started blinking furiously until Ryuk kicked it. Its response was zapping him with violent electrical shocks until he was thrown back into the railing by the stairs. Prompting him to convulse into some kind of seizure before everything went black.

--

Rule # 15: The shinigami whose bound to the mortal user of the Life Script may take a human form if he or she so chooses depending on the books dependency on the owner. Should said shinigami take a human form, the shinigami may witness unfavorable symptoms. Those include: vomiting, twitching, OCD, and occasional dependency for adrenaline rushes.

--

He awoke several moments later to rub the back of his head. Keegan wasn't home yet and he wondered how long she would be while she was gone. "I guess I'll explore the neighborhood a bit 'til she gets back." The door opened and closed behind him and he found the sun feeling unusually brighter than it normally would be to him. "Ugh. Sheesh. Tone down the rays some, will ya?"

"Afternoon!" Somebody called to him.

He had to stop then and turn his head to whoever had spoken to him. A little balding man next door was watering his little sky garden and waving at Ryuk. Something was wrong. "Uh…Yeah, hi." He responded quickly. How could that guy just see him out of the blue? Unless…

In moments Ryuk had rushed back inside the house in the hallway bathroom to look at himself in the mirror. Normally he wouldn't but-"OH YOU STUPID NOTEBOOK!"

It had done it. That Life Script really had done it. It had put him in a mortal form and Ryuk didn't like it one bit. This was probably even worse than having apple withdrawals. This was terrible. It was awful. His normal leather outfit had been changed to accommodate this 'form' the book had given him until he decided whether he wanted to change back or not. And he really wanted to. The gangly leather outfit wasn't a outfit anymore. It was a black leather jacket, dark faded jeans with rips at the knees and boots. Biker boots…

He poked his head out from the doorway in the bathroom to scowl at the Life Script laying on the floor by the staircase. "I hate you…" He hissed at the book before returning back to the mirror in the bathroom. "Dammit. I look hideous." He snarled. Actually, he probably didn't in human standards but for him, Ryuk was horribly disgusted. His hair was black and greasy and somehow messed up in some weird way on top of his head that he didn't like.

"This must be what my hair looks like in this ugly shell of a body." He looked down at his jacket and tugged on it before looking at a tag on the inside that clearly read: 'Harley Davidson'. "Oh come on! You've got to be kidding me! A label?! A label?!!" He snarled, jumping out of the bathroom to yell at a notebook that clearly wasn't going to answer him. "What did I do to deserve this?" He asked.

Back in the bathroom again, Ryuk was trying to figure out what else had been changed. All right, so the earring was still there, the belts were all together…his eyes were a humanly dark amber color and he looked to be just a few years older than Keegan in this wretched human husk. What next? "Pfft. I'll probably be driving a motorcycle around and look like some kind of punk up to no good." Hey. That gave him an idea.

"If people can see me in this form right now, I can do whatever I want kind of." Now that Ryuk thought about it, he sort of wanted to be seen. Maybe not in an attention seeking sense but in a way to roam about as if he had some trouble he wanted to get into. "I think I'll have some fun today."

--

The rough air felt good once he got used to maneuvering this hunk of junk. If Ryuk could recall correctly he'd just been strolling around the local town and 'window shopping' as some called it when someone had callled him over into an alleyway where he was presented with this obvious motorcycle that didn't belong to him:

"Hey, you're Mike's friend right?"

"Mike? Oh…uh, yeah. Yeah. Mike."

"Well, he said somebody was coming by to pick up the bike at this location. He all ready paid in full for it for ya, so it's all yours pal."

"Seriously? Wow, that's nice of him."

"All right, then. He said of course that I should throw in the helmet for free, so the helmet's free."

"All right then, I'll see Mike later than to thank him."

"Yeah, sure. And tell him I said great doing business with him."

--

That poor sap, he had no idea that Ryuk had basically just stolen this bike. This bike that must have cost quite a pretty penny: A Nightrod VRSC. He wondered what Keegan would think if she saw him with this bike. "Oh fu-" A truck zoomed by him beeping its horn loudly and he realized that he had to get home before she did. The engine on the bike revved up and Ryuk turned it down an open alleyway before he whizzed out of it to cut off a taxi in that general area before he pulled the purring vehicle up in front of the little row house and parked it there.

He pulled the helmet off and put it under his arm before he opened the door and closed it behind him. "Where the hell should I put this thing so she won't see it?" Oh that was a good idea, hide the helmet while there's a suspicious motorcycle parked out front of her house. That was an original idea. There wasn't much he could do before the door handle jiggled and a wall of grocery bags shielded him from Keegan's vision.

"Hey! Do you know if Joe came by today or if the cops set him free on the news today? There's a weird bike parked out front and I'd like to know who owns it before I have that pretty machine towed away."

"Yeah, that would be mine." Ryuk coughed, clearing his throat as she entered the kitchen. Oh boy, how was he going to explain this to her. "It was so slow at the grocery store. I can't believe they only had three cashiers working today as busy as it was." She continued, before realizing she'd left the Life Script out and went to retrieve it from the living room.

It wasn't on the coffee table when Keegan went to pick it up. She instead found it carelessly left on the floor and opened to the inner cover where she skimmed over Rule # 15. "Hey! Did you see this new rule?" She asked, picking up the notebook while she walked back into the kitchen to find the helmet sitting on the kitchen counter. She looked at it funny before she looked at this strangely unfamiliar (yet at the same time familiar) man sitting on her kitchen table.

"Who are you?"

"Why don't you ask the notebook?" Ryuk growled as he glared at the little white notebook in her hands.

Keegan dropped the Life Script. "RYUK?!"

"I think that thing's got a personal vendetta against me, I look six feet under!"

She stammered something awful and unintelligible before she snatched the notebook back up. "How did-"

"It hates me." He pointed at it, with a scowl. "Ask the notebook. I think it's got something against me because after you left, this is what happened to me!" He pointed out as he tugged on his leather jacket. "Look at this, it ruined me!"

"But…" She flipped it open. "You can change back you know."

"It changed me against my will…"

"But you can still change back…Have you even tried?" She asked, hitting him over the head with the notebook. "And get off my table with those boots!"

Ryuk dropped off the table with an obnoxious 'thud' after getting down. He stood a at least a foot and a half taller than Keegan so she didn't really seem so threatening from the angle he was staring down at her from. "There, happy?"

"Not particularly. Whose bike is that?" She asked.

"I guess you've noticed that the helmet's mine. So I suppose the bike is mine." Ryuk shrugged with a grin. "Why? You mad?"

"DID YOU STEAL THAT BIKE?!"

"Kind of. Somebody mistook me for somebody else and told me the bike was mine. Some guy named Mike had all ready paid for it. So I took it. I mean, it WAS so generously offered to me." He was testing her patience now. This was certainly fun to do.

She hit him in the back of the head. "Ryuk the cops will come after you if they know that you stole it! Do you know that-"

"Hey, the guy wasted his money and all ready paid for it. So it's the other's fault because he mistook me for somebody else. So nothing I could do about it."

"You could have been honest and said: 'I'm not so-and-so, sorry.'" She put her hand son her hips as she tried to correct him on his obviously criminal-like behavior. "I can't believe you!"

"You left me alone Keegan, so I had some fun. Maybe I'll give the bike back, maybe I won't. But it is pretty damn pricey if you look at it." He pondered aloud in admiration of it. "I think I might keep it."

"That's a Harley Davidson Nightrod VRSC! Are you crazy?!" She snapped, her hands clasping over her head. "We HAVE to return that back to the owner!"

"The owner wasn't there to claim it, I don't think I should. Hey! It rides pretty smoothly, you wanna ride it yourself?" He asked, gesturing to the door. She slapped him in the back of the head again. "Ouch!"

"You idiot!"

The door handle jingled again and Keegan and Ryuk got awfully quiet when Aunt Carol walked in. "I'm back! Oh…Hello. Who's this Keegan?" Her aunt asked looking over at Ryuk. "Oh! That must be your bike then! I'm sorry, I thought some hoodlum in the neighborhood had parked it there deliberately thinking they could get away with it."

"Yeah, ma'am. I'm that hoodlum." Ryuk pointed out, clearly not happy that somebody had literally insulted him so blatantly in such a polite tone.

"Keegan, we had a talk about boys in the house didn't we?" Her aunt asked.

Was Aunt Carol seriously going to do this now? Oh whatever entity was out there clearly disliked her today. She knew Ryuk was probably having a ball inside. "Yes, Aunt Carol. He just got here actually when you got in the door. So I was going to wait until you got in the door to tell you. Ah, Aunt Carol, this is…" She had to think of a name really quick. One that was believable because 'Ryuk' wouldn't cut it. "Roy."

"Aunt Carol, this is Roy." Keegan introduced the two. "Roy's a friend of mine, he's in one of my classes at school. He majors in my photography class. He mainly photographs motorcycles and has been submitting certain images to bike shops to advertise the bikes in." She explained.

'Best. Damn. Lie. Ever.' Ryuk thought to himself. "Yeah, that's me. The kid with the bike. Got it as an early Christmas present." Oh! That was a good lie too! He was catching on to how Keegan managed her lying skills so well.

"Oh, well. It's nice to meet you. I'm Carol Phelps." They shook hands, despite the fact Ryuk was reluctant to. "Well, I'll be upstairs wrapping some things for the rest of the family. No misbehaving." He pointed at Ryuk with an accusatory glare on her face before she left the room.

"…Roy, huh?" Ryuk snickered.

"Shut up…"

--

Authoress Note: Yes folks. Yes. I did. I decided that this would be the 'CRACK' chapter. I had to. I just had to. So please nobody shoot me. Just don't. Part of me thinks it turned out well and the other half thinks…'Damn. What did you eat today to make you write this?' Also, I felt that shinigamis should be able to take human forms, but this is only in regards to the Life Script rules and stuff. Just in case anybody was wondering. All right well…feel free to review or flame on this chapter. Thanks.


	20. Worth it

Authoress Note: Wow! Crack Chapter 19 went better than I expected! I scratch that-Better than the Chapter with 'Rock 'em Sock 'em notebooks!' YAY! We're here! At Chapter 20 guys! Chapter 20! Can you believe it? I believe it? I know I can't! I believe some reviewer cookies are in order! Who has awesome baking skills….? Not me.

Reviewer Acknowledgment:

Jillian Jiggs: I do hope that last chapter satisfied your 'crack' craving. I don't know if Keegan can technically 'have' Ryuk's babies. We'd have to see what other shinigamis might say about that. You know? Also…what if The Death Note rule of 'no sex for shinigamis' still applies? That would be God-awful. Then again, with me you never know what I'll do. Hee hee. Thanks.

PiScEs-BlOsSoM69: You liked that part when he stole the motorcycle? I did too. I think it was pretty funny when he freaked out about the Harley Davidson jacket. Best Life Script moment ever. That's like his worst nightmare, waking up to find a Harley Davison label on his leather outfit and be like: 'wtf is this!?' Thanks.

Demi-Crow Sings: Do you know that it was YOU that inspired me to write the fanfiction? Absolutely! Of course it was! I remember when you told me 'I'd like to see where you'll go with this' and that was it. I was like: 'Fanfiction. Right now.' Muahah! So I do have to thank you for your inspiration for the story. Oh yeah? Chapter 3? Yeah. The earlier chapters aren't that well written. I apologize for that. Thanks though.

Michi-nin: If you'd like an image of Ryuk's 'bike' just go to the Harley Davidson website and look up Nightrod VRSC. I actually went to the Harley Davidson website to look at the bikes and went: 'Hmm…which one is best suited for Ryuk?' I saw the Nightrod VRSC and was like: 'That's the one.' Aww…Keegan's not that short. She's only 5'4 and Ryuk's like…6'1 in human standards? Have you seen the criminal line-up picture with him and Light? He's at least 7'0. Unfortunately, I can't bring L back because he's been dead for too long and Keegan doesn't know anything about him. I did think on it though and decided not to. Ryuk's not exactly 'human'. The human form allows other mortals to be able to see him in a 'human' state. They'd never know he was a shinigami. The human form's kind of a façade. You know? Tee hee.

Syrupdrip: I think I might do that idea next; he tries out his human form again and tries to fly through a wall? Yeah watch for the 'bam'! Then there will be random china dishes breaking in the kitchen. Haha. Glad to see you liked the idea of Ryuk getting a human form. I don't know if Light's plan will be full proof because he's going to figure out more on who hacked into the Task Force database. He'll be able to pinpoint that Kuro is in America but he won't know that Keegan is Kuro, let's just say. Thanks.

Sahxyel: I had to. Muahaha! I had to. Roy was the name that's been in my head for about two weeks now. So I picked Roy. It's like a miracle happened when Ryuk dropped that Life Script in a journey to sate his apple addiction. Yay for plot bunnies!

I actually WAS thinking of images from 'I CAN HAZ CHEEZEBURGR' but I thought it wouldn't go over well. So I didn't put a reference to the LOL CATS. I wish I had though now that I think about it. I like your enthusiasm for Lucil's face: 'KUROKAT ISH NO PLZD.' That would be great. Thanks.

Sharnii Brooke:Shh! Don't say that! Ryuk might protest against it. Also, I don't know if she can technically have his 'babies'. By the way: What would you call a half shinigami-half human child? Is there even a name for that? Lol Thanks.

Dragon's Return: (loops in a new reviewer) Well hello there. Nice to have you with us. Hope to be hearing from you very soon for the upcoming chapters. Thanks.

Here's Epic Chapter 20 guys! Enjoy.

--

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps) and others, belong to me. Thanks._

_--_

"So, Roy. How long have you and Keegan been seeing each other?" Aunt Carol asked as they were sitting at the kitchen table having lunch. If Ryuk could call eating apples as 'lunch'. He almost choked on a piece when Carol Phelps asked him that question. It was as though she thought they were all ready in a relationship.

"Ah! What? Us? Together? Oh, no. I'm just a friend of Keegan's. We're not seeing each other." He assured, trying to not look at Keegan. Her face of course was priceless by the look she gave her aunt. Who would feel comfortable with that question?

"Aunt Carol…" Keegan said through her teeth.

"Well, it shouldn't be anything to be ashamed of if you are seeing each other. I think it's cute. You need to start fresh…especially after Joe." Her aunt declared.

Keegan choked on her iced tea and Ryuk crunched down hard on the apple piece in his mouth. "Can we not go there?" Ryuk asked suddenly. "After what happened a few days ago I could kill him."

Keegan shot a look at Ryuk and she kicked him from under the table. Ryuk made a muffled noise of pain before giving Keegan this look that spoke all volumes of displeasure. "Yeah Aunt Carol. Joe's going to prison for a long time. He tried to kill TJ. Remember? You weren't here to see it."

"He raised his hand to you Keegan." Aunt Carol frowned in anger.

"Yeah, she hit back though." Ryuk chuckled.

"I kicked him." Keegan corrected. "I hope it hurt too."

"You shouldn't talk like that! He could come back after you!"

"Why do you think I'm here?" Ryuk asked her aunt with a skeptical look. "That's why she told me to come. To give Joe something to be scared of."

"And what would YOU do?" Aunt Carol asked with her own skepticism. "Hm?"

"Call TJ's gangster friends." Keegan joked.

"They could help Roy whale on him." It was suddenly apparent that Keegan and Ryuk were laughing about that. "Come on Aunt Carol. You remember when TJ came over when you were here and Joe called my phone five times while we were having dinner. He said 'Man, I'm gonna get my buddies to drive by that cholo's house in Ireland if he don't cut it out. I tell you, my people are everywhere.'"

Ryuk glanced at Keegan. "He's been harassing you longer than that?"

"Right after we broke up." She answered quickly.

"Well, I won't tolerate criminal behavior in this house and if you think I'd let you call TJ's friends for help in such and act Keegan-"

"It was just a joke Aunt Carol. We're not calling anybody. I'd never do something stupid like that." Keegan insisted.

"TJ would." Aunt Carol rolled her eyes.

"You're only saying that because he's Latino." Keegan frowned.

"Oh Keegan…"

"Hey!" Ryuk suddenly butted in. "I thought I'd let Keegan try the bike out for a bit. It might get some of the hot air out of her head." He suggested, a grin on his face before Keegan kicked him under the table again.

"You're funny…" She said sarcastically.

"Are you good at handling that bike?" Aunt Carol asked, hoping to God that he was.

"I've been riding them since I was a kid with my parents." Parents…that was a pleasant word to use. Ugh. It sounded so gross. "So, I'm very skilled with it."

"Pfft. Yeah. Like I'm gonna get on that bike with-AH! HEY! HEY!" The chair beneath her suddenly lifted up and Keegan was slung over Ryuk's shoulder. "Put me down! I hate it when you do this! Just because I'm shorter than you doesn't give you the right to-" She was yelling at him in agitation and some Celtic cursing ensued before Ryuk gave a casual wave to Aunt Carol.

"We'll be back soon. I'll drive safely." He assured.

"Just make sure that hot air gets out of her head before you bring her back." Aunt Carol chuckled, shaking her head.

"I'll work on that. Sure." The door closed behind him with Keegan still yelling and beating her fists against his back before he set her down. Ryuk received and unpleasant slap to the face. "Ow…"

"What in the world do you think you're doing?" She suddenly found the bike helmet in her hands.

"Shut up and put it on." Ryuk snapped.

"Oh no, I'm not getting on this thing with you. You probably don't even know how to drive it."

"I've seen a lot in this world Keegan. So I know what I'm doing." Ryuk informed, pointing at the Nightrod. "Now, get on or I'll strap you to the bike myself."

"No." Keegan said stubbornly, pushing the helmet back into his hands. In return he shoved it at her and the Life Script along with it.

"You left this out in the wide open living room and she could have found it. Now I suggest if you don't get on that bike I'm gonna tell her that we ARE dating and that you had ME beat up Joe. You're aunt's pretty damn gullible Keegan. So shut up, and get on the bike."

She scowled down at the Life Script and then back up at him, his arms crossed with a frown. "Well?"

She shoved the helmet over her head and reluctantly pulled herself onto the Nightrod.

"…Shut up and drive."

--

"KUROKAT ISH NO PLZD." Matsuda read, unhappy about the latest rejection. "Well…I guess Kuro's not happy about us trying to butt in on his work." He scratched the top of his head with a frown. "This sucks."

"I'll say." Light said. "That's the fastest response yet. Not even a word from Kuro at all? Just this video of Kuro-neko?" He stared at the video of Lucil hissing and clawing at the camera with the blinking chat speak words coming up repeatedly. "Kuro doesn't want anyone's help. A little strange if you ask me."

"Any new messages from Kuro other than that?" He asked curiously.

"Nothing, but the Kira killings are getting worse. It's like Kira's working at double the capacity now that Kuro's back in the game." Aizawa sighed, snuffing out his cigarette. "I've really gotta quit this.."

"And Kuro just keeps fighting back. Harder and Harder. Hitting close to home." Matsuda said with concern. "I'm worried that Kuro might actually get caught in some kind of danger if he keeps messing with Kira."

"That's because Matsuda thinks Kuro's a girl too." Aizawa chuckled.

"Really! Kuro could be! If we don't start listening better to the SPK and negotiating better we could be out of our jobs if we don't keep up on the Kira case. We've got to leave Kuro alone now."

"What if Kuro is working for Kira though?" Light suddenly asked, turning to look at Matsuda with a serious face. "Kuro could just be a distraction-"

"If Kuro is a distraction then we've got to get back on the Kira case Light. We need to stop focusing so much on Kuro." Aizawa argued.

"How can we if Kuro keeps sending us messages?" Light felt a little more than annoyed at this. "You know?"

"Well you said we should start working on the Kuro case too. So it's you're decision Light. Are we to continue the Kuro case or not? Because we don't have anything and the SPK has something." They were right. Light soon realized this and he suddenly had to make a decision that would leave only him to find out who Kuro was on his own. "…Call off the Kuro case. We need to get back to work on the Kira case. There's nothing we can do for Kuro because Kuro is doing nothing illegal."

That was more like it. The rest of the Task Force seemed pleased and work on the Kira case began again.

For now Light would just have to send a message to Mikami in order to continue Kira's lure on Kuro. It didn't seem to be working as far as Light was concerned. _'It looks like I'm on my own for the Kuro case. For now I have to figure out who has been hacking into the database and pinpoint where the hacking is coming from.'_

--

The rough air was blowing at her from all sides it felt like as Ryuk zipped through the streets back and forth on the bike quickly. Her arms were gripped tightly around his waist as they zipped in an out of traffic. "Where are we going?" She shouted through the helmet.

Wind on his face, Ryuk wasn't exactly sure either. All he had on his mind was just riding around on the bike to see what Keegan thought of it. All right, so he stole it. Big deal. It wasn't going to be his fault anyways. The guy that gave it to him was stupid. And Keegan…was mad as hell when he told her it wasn't his. So what? He wasn't going to give this nice motorcycle up just like that. "I don't know! I just thought about driving it around with you on it is all." He responded. "How ya doin' back there?"

"I hate this damn thing! I hate motorcycles in general!"

"Then why'd you get on it in the first place?" Ryuk asked.

"You bribed me into it!" She argued.

Oh, well. That was true. There was no way that she could have gotten out of that bribe anyhow. Her aunt would have immediately believed him if he decided to say: 'We're actually dating and didn't want to tell you. Keegan's so shy.' It wouldn't have been that hard for her aunt to figure it out. Wait…was he technically dating her? All right, so he did share some form of care for Keegan but he wasn't in love with her. That didn't happen, especially to him. "Yeah…I know." He chuckled. "Funny though right?"

"You're an asshole! That's not funny! Especially after Joe could have potentially killed me the other day-"

Her sentence was cut off and Ryuk suddenly hit the brakes hard on the bike. Several skid marks were burnt onto the concrete in the alleyway he had pulled into. His amber eyes glaring at Keegan when he turned his head to look at her. "…Shut up…about Joe."

He sounded obviously angry every time she mentioned him and Keegan nervously chewed on her lip. "Why does the thought of him bother you so much Ryuk?"

"Because he hurt you." He said through clenched teeth, his back to her. His hands were gripping the handles of the bike tightly. "Keegan, he hit you."

"I hit back though. I'm not afraid to get into a fistfight or a brawl with anyone Ryuk."

"Oh yeah Keegan? And whom have you fought recently? I don't think Joe counts." He asked, obviously not believing her if she had indeed fought others previously in her life.

"Why do you care, Ryuk?" Keegan asked, pulling the helmet off her head.

"It was YOU who said that I care about you. So why shouldn't I?" He pointed out blatantly.

"And why DO you care about me Ryuk?" She put her hands on her hips with a frown.

"Who else is gonna put up with me?" He asked, getting off the bike. "Huh, Keegan? Certainly not Light or any of the other shinigamis that are familiar with my behavior."

Keegan got off the bike and held the helmet in her hands and turned away from him. Keegan had no answer to give Ryuk on that before she handed the helmet back to him. "…I'm sorry. I'll walk home. I shouldn't have even brought that subject up."

He pushed it back into her hands. "If you're sorry then get back on the bike and I'll take you home."

They shared a brief silence before she shoved the helmet back over her head and got on the bike. "Okay."

They blazed off on the road again, but Ryuk didn't take her home just yet. "So, where else should I drive this thing?"

"YOU SAID YOU WERE TAKING ME HOME!"

"Nope. I'm gonna ride this thing around 'til it runs out of gas."

"UGH! I can't stand you…."

"Yeah, yeah. I know."

--

It was about 10:00 pm by the time they had returned to the house and Keegan certainly didn't like knowing that she'd had to tell her aunt that they were trying to bike out around the whole town. Her aunt' immediate assumption was that they WERE dating at that Keegan didn't have to tell her because Aunt Carol 'just knew'. Getting off the bike Keegan handed the helmet to him and frowned. "Well Ryuk, now you don't have to tell my aunt we're 'dating' because she thinks we are."

"Right, she thinks you and 'Roy' are dating." He grinned.

"Ugh. Don't say that word." Keegan shuddered. "Just don't." 'Dating' being said word.

Getting back in the house, Keegan found that Ryuk was once again his shinigami self and invisible to the human eye (except hers) once more. She opened her laptop to find that there was a message waiting in the form of an internet stream. She'd used a special alert to track any messages sent to her by Mr. Yagami or and Kira message in general. This one was a bit different from any other Kira message Mr. Yagami had sent.

"_Hello to you Kuro,_

_I'm Kira. It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm guessing you've gotten this message now that I've sent it. This is a warning to you stating that if you mess with the 1__st__ Kira any longer I'll be forced to punish you. See, the 1__st__ Kira and I work together and I've recently been given orders to kill as many wrong doers as possible in order to frustrate you further in your search for him. Give up, you'll lose in the end and you know it."_

After the message ended, Keegan was taken aback. "Ah…Ryuk. Is someone else calling themselves Kira in order to distract me?"

"That's one of Misa's messages. Only she'd do something stupid like this and call herself Kira to try and confuse you. Remember what I told you, Misa is Light's faithful lapdog and will do whatever it takes to please him." He leaned over her shoulder to look at the white screen. "So I thought that might help, you know."

"Really? Well thanks. I appreciate it. Even if I didn't know this was a lapdog message, I could still figure out that Mr. Yagami didn't send this."

"True, Misa doesn't have the brightest brain on the planet."

"Just who is she?" Keegan asked, suddenly googling her name into a search engine. "Last name?"

"Amane."

Keegan found a article of her on Wikipedia and some local Japanese advertising posters online with her in some obviously gothic fairy-princess outfit and some other provocative-wear. "Oh…slut." Keegan laughed. "It's a wonder if she's not doing porn movies on the side. TJ would get a kick out of this. She's a model? Yeah, try 'skank of the month'." Keegan scoffed. "Gross."

"She's got a lingerie line too, along with perfumes."

"She's be a great 'Victoria's Secret' Model. None of those girls have the greatest brains either." Keegan shrugged. "What? Is Mr. Yagami basically her 'sugar daddy'?"

"You could say that, but she doesn't know any better. Gotta give her some form of empathy. She's clingy and needy and annoying." Ryuk twitched at the thought, recalling when she hugged him and he was rather uncomfortable with the fact that he was even hugged in general. The thought returning to him now, Ryuk was a bit more disturbed by it. It didn't feel awkward or odd when he'd hugged Keegan. It was probably because she wasn't as clingy or needy (except when she got upset).

"I don't care. She's helping Mr. Yagami. So she'll endure my wrath. If he gets frustrated with her, he could probably kill her too…Would he?" Keegan asked, looking up at Ryuk.

"Yeah. He would. He's willing to kill anyone that would possibly get in his way or expose his identity as Kira. Even his lapdogs are susceptible to his 'power'." He saw Keegan look down at the Life Script. "…Would he do it now?"

"Probably not. She's too loyal to him. So he has no need to."

She left the Life Script alone. "I could write her name in it…but I won't." Keegan sighed. "For now…let's go fix the problems all ready created."

"Careful Keegan…Mikami could get involved too."

"Mikami…the other lapdog?" Keegan asked, looking down at the Life Script. "And he's just as bad as Mr. Yagami?"

Ryuk nodded. "Why? What are you going to do?"

Keegan grinned. "Spam."

"What?"

"Spam my message all over the Task Force database in the criminal section. If that's how Mr. Yagami's getting his names." She picked up her camera and hooked it up to the laptop. "It's time to hit back."

"How?" Ryuk asked, looking over at Lucil coming out of his litter box.

"Taking lots of pictures of Lucil, and using the LOL CAT Chatspeak to spam Kuro-neko all over the Task Force it possible that I could hack into Mr. Yagami's computer?"

"Not a chance. I don't even know anything about his laptop." Ryuk stared at the glowing screen on her laptop before Keegan got up from the couch and started taking pictures of Lucil in the dark. His one golden eye was glinting in the camera light with each picture. She often told Ryuk to provoke Lucil into 'angry' faces and took pictures of him all over the place: the kitchen, the couch, the cat tree, in the bathroom, and on the stairs. "This will be good."

"You've got a lot of work to do there Keegan." Ryuk mumbled while she uploaded almost 50 pictures of Lucil onto the computer. Her camera all ready hooked up, Keegan started recording her next message after all of the chatspeak words were in the pictures.

--

12: 00 p.m--Japan Time.

Just as soon as the Task Force was about to go for their lunch break-

"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?!" Aizawa snarled suddenly.

Light and the rest of the force looked up at Aizawa'a annoyed face when he brought the laptop to them to show the many different pictures of Kuro-neko plastered all over the criminal database. Light couldn't have been more mortified. "Well, now we know that Kuro obvious likes to hack into the database." Light scoffed.

"Maybe it's a message. Like when we tried to negotiate an alliance with him last time." Matsuda suggested. "I mean, all of the pictures have legible words on them."

"Sure Matsuda, we're gonna find an answer out of: 'Syztim undr maytenze.'" Aizawa growled as he read some of pictures. "How many pictures of one cat did he take?"

"The SPK may have had the same problem, a system hacking." Light pondered.

"I don't know, they'd surely have let us know if Kuro had hacked into their system. I mean, they're always on par with current situations. I think we're the only ones that Kuro likes to pick on." Matsuda whined. "That's not fair. Why not the SPK too?"

"Because…I don't think Kuro views the SPK as a threat. Why us, I don't understand." Light said, "Are we sure that Kuro's not just trying to send us a message through-"

He was cut off when Aizawa clicked on a hidden file embedded in one of the pictures. It popped up and the black background with the backwards-white K was again presented to them.

"_Greetings Task Force. It's been a while I suppose. Sorry for Kuro-neko's rude behavior. He's a mischievous little feline." _There was a chuckle and Light growled.

"Have you been hacking into the data base, Kuro?" Light asked.

Light, unexpectedly received a response. _"Yes. I have."_

The rest of the Task Force stared in wonder. "Why?" Matsuda asked.

"_It is my assumption that Kira knows most of the criminal names from the database. Only a hacker would be sneaky enough to get into the database and get at these names. I, like Kira, am a hacker myself if you haven't all ready noticed. I'm surprised you all don't bother to do system maintenance on your Task Force database. It's really easy to get into."_

"And you've been using our Data base to counter-act Kira's killings?" Matsuda asked.

"_Correct, because, unlike Kira I have real power. I have good power. I have the power to put the world's balance back in order. I don't even think Kira can even begin to FATHOM what I have in store for him. That…AND the 2__nd__ Kira. Oh yes, I know about the 2__nd__ Kira too." _

It was a case that L had seen over long ago. The 2nd Kira, when Light first met Misa. "2nd Kira? But that hasn't surfaced-"

"_I received a message from the 2__nd__ Kira urging me to stop 'messing' with the first Kira. I'm here to tell you, and Kira if he's listening. If Kira has hacked into the database…that I'm not going to stop. I refuse to stop. You can't make me stop. Nobody can." _There was silence before Kuro gave a brief humming tune and a computerized sing-song voice of a child's voice recording came up.

"_And as for Kira stopping me…or finding me…You caaaaan't catch me. Nanny-nanny boo boo. Youuuu caaaaan't catch me. Nanny-nanny boo booooo."_

Matsuda of course didn't get what Kuro meant. "Ah…was that supposed to be funny?"

Kuro gave no indicated response to Matsuda before a question was directed at Light.

"_Tell me Mr. L…does it frustrate you, thinking that I'm working for Kira?"_

"How would you know about that?" Light asked, uncomfortable to think that Kuro was in his head now.

"_I wouldn't. I just heard about it. Researched on it. As one with divine intervention on their side, I have a tendency to get information very well." _Kuro answered. _"So then Mr. L. I've got a riddle for you, one that Kira gave to me personally to answer. So when I answered it he'd be quite confused."_

"All right, I'm listening." Light said, a little annoyed with Kuro's games. "First some questions though."

--

"Careful Keegan. Light's no stranger to interrogating people." Ryuk warned.

In silence, Keegan looked over at Ryuk with a concerned look on her face before she nodded her conformation that she could handle this.

"_Go on."_

--

"Has Kira done something to you to inflict your wrath upon him?" Light asked curiously.

"_He has."_ Kuro answered with a sense of vengeance in the computer tone of voice.

"How so?" Aizawa asked.

"_I am a being of moral standards. I believe that Kira is a highly disturbed individual that needs to be punished for the crimes he has committed. It doesn't matter that there is evil in the world because of criminals, God gave humans free-will. Kira cannot make people behave the way he wants them too. See, I hate Kira because he thinks he has the world in the palm of his hands by instilling fear in the lives of those who might do bad things. He not only would kill criminals to 'put this world in order' but he would also try to maliciously kill a little girl recently healed from her cancers (by my power) to make his point to me not to mess with him!"_

Light looked taken aback. Kuro certainly seemed unforgiving of that notion he had tried to kill little Cameron Simpkins with the Death Note. "You're also angry that he targeted one of the ones you brought back to life?"

"_I. Am. Furious. Mr. L." _Kuro hissed.

"So in response, while you laid low for a while, you hit him back harder than he could ever imagine?" Light asked. "How did you manage to strike back so quickly?"

"_I waited…See, I have a personal life to uphold as well. Unfortunately, personal life got in the way of things. But I used this as an opportunity to lay low and when the time was right, I struck back. I imagine, Kira suffered some painful damages from my power."_

So it had been Kuro that caused the Death Note to reject the names he was writing in it. But…how? Light looked back up at the screen on the laptop. "Do you know who Kira is?"

"…_I do. But I won't tell. Until the time is right."_

"Why make us go through all of this work then? It would be easier to tell us." Matsuda pleaded. "Please, Kuro if you are for the good of this world, you'll tell us. Won't you?"

"_I cannot. Emotional damages could happen. Plus…you'd never believe me unless the evidence was there, which it isn't."_ Kuro answered. _"I apologize that I must lead you and Kira on a wild goose chase again. But hopefully it will give you more on who to suspect Kira as."_

"All right then, thanks. Now, what about that riddle?" Light asked.

"_What do you call yourself if you are dead yet alive at the same time?"_

"That's easy. A vampire, what else?" Light asked.

"A zombie?" Matsuda suggested.

"An angel?" Aizawa pondered, cigarette hanging out of his mouth.

"_Actually, that is what Kira would be if I asked him the question. A creature that feeds off the fear and blood of the living. I'm actually what one would call…Schrödinger's Cat."_

"Schrödinger…As in…Erwin Schrodinger?" Light asked.

"_Precisely. Sir Erwin Schrödinger was quite an intelligent man. He was so smart that he actually created a physics theory without having to use a real life experiment. He imagined how the experiment would go in his head. The experiment involved putting a cat into a box and closing said box. A gas would then be injected into the box. Of course the whole purpose was to never open the box. If the gas worked and poisoned the cat it would be dead and he would never know (cats are quite quiet creatures, like Kuro-neko fro example) but even if the poisonous gas didn't work and the cat was alive he'd never know because he'd never open the box. So the idea is…I could be either dead or alive. You'd never know."_

"But that doesn't make sense." Aizawa snorted.

"_It does, you'd have to ask the late Erwin Schrödinger though why it seems like it doesn't. It's too hard to write out the equation for the theory. It's easier to describe it in the experiment way. But I guess I'm harder to figure out…just like Schrödinger's Cat. I'm afraid that's all the time I can allow for this evening. You've had me overstay my welcome with all of these questions. Goodnight…Task Force. Mr. L…"_

That said, the stream ended and Light was left with a lot of thinking to do on his mind.

"Well, Light. What do we do now?" Aizawa asked, putting out his cigarette after taking a long drag on it.

"We find out where Kuro's hacked in the system from. Maybe that was a hint at how to locate Kira. Kuro did say that Kira could be hacking into the system to get at the names of these criminals."

All of the sudden from the T.V, noon news came on and several criminals that Light had ordered Misa to kill today were still alive and somewhere…Light knew somewhere…that Kuro had distracted he and the Task Force to get those names and save the ones just killed.

--

The pen scribbled the names down onto the Death Note page excitedly. Misa was all too pleased to be doing a good job for Light. Just as soon as those criminals had dropped dead though…

--

Keegan was watching CNN when they had just received a news report of 10 criminals in Japan dropping dead from nowhere. CNN usually got names quickly so Keegan had time to write down the names quickly after they had died. The response wouldn't take long to happen.

--

Within moments of writing the names down in her own Death Note, the names on the pages started glowing red and ink began bleeding out of the pages and she panicked. Unsure of what was happening until the news came on and she was just as shocked as Light must have been at work. He watched the news frequently enough, but Misa's shock was more of fear. This Kuro meant business and Kuro acted fast when it came to those who had just died. She looked down at the ink bleeding out of the pages and tried to sop it up with paper towels. "NO! Not on the carpet again! Light's going to be so angry with you!" She whimpered.

--

Keegan, now satisfied, closed her laptop until she got another message. It was from N this time. "Oh shoot! Is this from the same guys that were in my house a few days ago asking me weird irrelevant questions?" She asked Ryuk, he was sitting next to her casually.

He leaned in her line of vision to look at the screen before he nodded. "Yeah," He chuckled.

"I'm guessing they've tracked your hacking skills."

"…Ryuk…do you think they know I'm Kuro? I mean…should I be worried?"

"Maybe a little." The shinigami answered with a warning. "Near's pretty smart Keegan."

"Child prodigy?" She rolled her eyes. "Oh, great. I thought he looked a little young for an 'agent'."

"He's not a 'kid' Keegan. He's probably about the same age as you…maybe a little younger than TJ." Ryuk pondered aloud.

"Hey…" Keegan said suddenly. "Thanks."

"For what?" Ryuk asked curiously.

"You know…sticking by me through this." Keegan shrugged.

"I told you, it's about the apples." He defended.

"Even if it isn't about the apples Ryuk…I'm really glad…I met you." She mumbled, kind of embarrassed to admit it.

"What?" He said, rather surprised. "Why'd you ever be glad to have met me?"

"My life's been too ordinary and since you came I've definitely been having quite an adventure. So…thank you. For being around me." She held her hand out to him to shake it. "That's what friends do."

They shared an awkward silence before his hand reached up and they shook on such a great achievement. "You know those _feelings_ I told you about today?"

Awkward silence now.

"Uh…yeah?" Keegan said, glancing at him after they'd finished shaking hands.

"I think I like them." He muttered, obviously not wanting to admit it. "I think I like them…a lot."

More awkward silence. "Oh…uh…that's…cool?" Keegan said oddly, scratching the back of her head.

"Yeah." Ryuk mumbled.

"So…" Keegan trailed off. "Sticking around so Joe doesn't get me if he busts out of prison?" She chuckled.

Something must have snapped in him. Every time he heard Joe's name, the image of him hitting Keegan came to mind and he felt even more threatened by the fact he could possibly hurt Keegan again if given the chance. He probably hadn't meant to feel the way he did but with such anger coursing through him, the shinigami just wanted to rip Joe to pieces.

Ryuk's gaze turned angry and she suddenly found herself face to face with his human form once more. Cornered at one point on the one side of the couch, he was gripping Keegan by her arms tightly. "Don't ever say his name again." He hissed.

Then it happened. Keegan was faced with the dilemma of a very awkward kiss that was crushed against her lips by Ryuk. She beat her hands against the leather of the Harley Davidson jacket until her arms went limp and Ryuk pulled away. He obviously didn't know whether to feel gross or just a bit shocked at himself in general. What had possessed him to do that? Well, whatever had told him to do what he did…he had liked it.

She was numb for several long and quiet moments before Keegan registered in her brain that Ryuk had actually done something to obviously piss her off enough to-

SLAP!

"Ow." Came Ryuk's voice in the dark.

Keegan stormed out of the room with the Life Script in her arms and up the steps before she slammed her door shut. Aunt Carol had gone out with her girl friends for more Christmas shopping and Ryuk and Keegan were alone in the house.

Once more, Ryuk found himself locked out of Keegan's room. "Keegan…"

The door cracked open and Keegan was looking out at him crumpled on the floor outside her room looking rather guilty. Was that for real? The anger and jealousy on Ryuk's face certainly was real and every time she mentioned Joe to him, he always got defensive of her and angry in general. So…was it because of Joe that he felt the way he did?

"…If I told you…that I think I feel more for you than I should…" Ryuk was trying hard to get something off his chest, through gritted teeth even. "What would you say?"

She had no true answer for Ryuk. It was hard to comprehend. Ryuk? In…actual love with her? Okay. So if he was, he didn't want to say it. Obviously it made him uncomfortable, but…the signs were all there. Weren't they? Jealousy over an 'abusive' ex-boyfriend that could have killed her if he wanted to, maintaining her secret identity even when around Mr. Yagami, he was around her 24/7 basically, he hadn't judged her for getting upset over him possibly dying, and hell, he had basically tried to be a show off to her with his 'bike', he'd taken her for a ride for hours on said bike, making sure she never left the Life Script anywhere for anyone else to see it, and to top it all off this human form was another thing.

Her hand was cupped over her mouth as she recalled only seconds ago…that awkward kiss. Joe obviously had something to do with it but…it just seemed so…unintentional until he had followed her up here again.

"I-I don't know. I mean…" Keegan trailed off.

"It's confusing. Earlier today with the video game…" She murmured. "I don't want to embarrass you."

Embarrass him? Keegan had never done a thing to embarrass him for as long as they had known each other. Bribing him with apples in the beginning seemed annoying and loathsome then but…now that Ryuk thought about it…

"I'm glad…I dropped the notebook that night." He muttered, bowing his head.

"What?" Keegan said, looking up from the floor.

"…I'm kind of…you know…" He was trying to get the word out. "_Happy_, we met. I don't think I could have lasted much longer if I hadn't. I thought it was just because of the apples in the beginning…I learned later on…it wasn't just about the apples anymore." It was hard to choose. Keegan or apples? Why choose when he basically had both?

"What about the apples?"

"I got both." He explained.

"Both?" She asked curiously.

"You and apples." He answered reluctantly.

The door creaked open a bit more. "It's not about the apples anymore…?"

"…No." Ryuk looked away from her outside the door. Reaching a hand up to rub the top of his head.

"What about the other shinigamis?" She asked. "What if Mr. Yagami finds out?"

Now she was looking for an excuse. Ryuk scowled at the floor. "I don't care what they think. They can go fuck themselves for all I care." He sneered. Oops. He'd just cursed when it was obvious cursing wasn't allowed in the Phelps' household. He half expected Keegan to slam the door on his hand. No such reaction occurred and Keegan opened the door slightly wider.

"What about Mr. Yagami?"

"…I'd kill him for you."

The door swung open and Keegan dropped to her knees to pull him into a tight hug. "…Okay." She whispered.

"Okay what?" He asked, brow quirking in response to her answer.

"Okay! We're dating! Are you happy?" Her face was buried into the leather of his jacket, but she wasn't crying. Her arms just tightened around him to the point where he could probably choke if he had the ability to breathe.

Ryuk blinked several times before he was holding Keegan with a mischievous grin on his face. "Yeah. I think so."

"…Don't expect to get another free kiss in again. That's the last thing you'll ever do." She said seriously. "It's gonna cost you quite a few apples, mister."

"…Worth it."

--

Authoress: Okay, so I think this should be another 'crack' chapter as well. Also, I believe this should give you Keegan x Ryuk shippers some glee. There, your crack is briefly sated…hopefully. But that doesn't meant 'baby-making' will come out of this! So, shush. Okay then folks, read, review, or flame. Thanks. Stay tuned for Chapter 21


	21. Watch and Learn

Authoress Note: Wow, about 90 reviews now folks! This is just great! Really, not only for the story, but also for the benefit of you guys too! I'm so excited, we're getting closer and closer to that 100 review point guys. YAY! Give yourselves a hand!

Reviewer Acknowledgement:

Sharnii Brooke: I can't really say for the baby making. I mean, I'd like to but at the same time I'd like to stay within the same context as the Death Note rule of: 'no sex for shinigamis'. Then again, we'll never know. I mean I COULD but then again I'd have to make it a 'mature' rating on the story then. Nobody wants that…do they? O.o Thanks.

Cocoasit4: Welcome new reviewer! I can assure you there's only one main OC and just a few unimportant sideline OCs. That's all. Oh I think I've had a lot of fun writing the last 20 or so chapters of this story. So yes, I've had lots of fun. Thanks.

Jillian Jiggs: Something tells me the more Ryuk and Keegan get closer together, the bigger that flame is gonna get on that crack pipe and then it might exploded making all of said 'crack' fly everywhere. Pinch me; I think there's something wrong with me. Haha. The part where Misa tried to stop the Death Note from bleeding ink all over the floor was pretty funny. You can just see her 'wtf' face in that whole segment. Haha. Thanks.

Michi-nin: Aw…I'm not sure they hooked up THAT fast. I mean, she's going to be pretty reluctant to accept the fact that Ryuk's actually got such feelings for her. I mean, this IS Ryuk we're talking about. Haha. I think this romance is going to be slow progress for them because Keegan's just that way. Of course, she's told Ryuk a lot of things she normally wouldn't confide to anyone else. So…that means something. Heehee. Good idea for that 'Kuro pwns Kira' thing. That might be an annoying pun that everyone in the world will soon realize after Kira's power is no longer in application because Kuro is basically making him the laughing stock of the world. Muahahah! Laugh at Kira! Laugh! Ahahaahah! Thanks.

Sahxyel: I think the way Ryuk and Keegan's relationship will pursue very slowly because of their personalities and the fact that Keegan's not exactly too eager to rush right into any kind of relationship, you know? I do plan to have Aizawa begin contacting the SPK about Light's behavior towards Kuro. I mean, he's been keeping his cool so that Light doesn't suspect anything, but at the same time he had to remind Light 'do we really wanna continue Kuro's case or focus on Kira? I'm confused.' So Light had to make a difficult decision if he didn't want to be detected as 'Kira'. Keegan's a very mysterious person so it would be hard to see what she would do. I mean, she's against Death, but I don't think Ryuk would like that if Keegan saved Light's life. I can't give anything away, so that will just have to keep baffling you for a bit. Sorry. But thanks for asking anyways! Thanks.

PiScEs-BlOsSoM69: I think I'll surprise you in the epilogue of the story. But I won't reveal anything to you. I refuse to give anything away. Muahaha. Thanks.

THePuNkPriiNcEzs: "Roy" is just a name Keegan came up with to hide the fact that Ryuk is a shinigami. Ryuk unfortunately doesn't stay in his human form all the time. He still has a reputation as a shinigami to uphold. Thanks.

Skygreen: Hello there! I'm glad you do like my fic. Hope to see you review more really soon!

All right guys! Enjoy Chapter 21.

--

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps) and others, belong to me. Thanks._

_--_

Aunt Carol had gotten in late so she wasn't paying attention to anything that might have gone on while she was shopping with her girlfriends. With Christmas not that far away, she was losing sleep. When she came downstairs that morning, she found Keegan asleep on the couch with her head in Ryuk's lap while he casually flipped through the t.v channels as 'Roy'. "Oh! Hello, I didn't know you were here, Roy." Aunt Carol stated with surprise.

He hated having to answer to this human pseudonym but he'd have to if he wanted to seem 'normal'. "Huh? Oh. Yeah, I spent the night. Kind of. Guest bedroom. You know, Keegan never mentioned anything about a third party once living here."

"Oh yes, that used to be my son's room." Aunt Carol scratched at the side of her head with a nervous chuckle.

"Oh yeah? Keegan didn't mention any cousins to me." Ryuk's brow cocked. That was odd. Keegan had said that Aunt Carol was all she had in this world. Had Keegan lied? Hm. He'd have to ask her that later.

"Tyler and I are…estranged." Aunt Carol reluctantly answered. "I'm sorry. Keegan and I don't talk about my son. He's not a very nice person." She of course seemed like she didn't want to talk about the subject any longer. "Oh, enough about the life of this old biddy here. What about you? What time did you kids get home last night?"

"Around 10:00." Ryuk shrugged. "Keegan fell asleep on the couch. So by the time I came down here this morning, she was still out cold. I came down here to check on her."

It sounded convincing enough because Aunt Carol merely smiled and left them alone. "I still got some wrapping of presents to do. I hid them well this year; Keegan likes to find out where I hide them each year. So I hid them over a friend's house and am going to wrap them there. Bye Roy." As the front door closed, Ryuk made a face.

"Bye Roy…" He mocked in an annoyed tone of voice before he shook Keegan slightly. "Hey, you gonna get up or do I have to kick you off the couch myself?"

One of her eyes opened to view the world around her. "She gone?" Keegan asked, looking around to see if the coast was clear.

"Yeah, could you have slept more convincingly?" Ryuk snorted.

"No…" Keegan said sarcastically. "That was just me pretending real well." Sitting up, she rubbed the back of her head. "So, how are we going to make this work?"

"Make what work?" Ryuk asked. "Our relationship or the next move we make for Light?" Oh, that would have been a great question to stump Keegan…if she were any other human.

"We'll work on our relationship later. Right now I've got to watch that message from the SPK." Keegan pulled her laptop out from underneath the couch cushions and flipped it open. "All right, they sent it to me last night. So that must mean they want to talk to me again." She pulled the saved message up and opened it.

"_Greetings Kuro. It's nice to be speaking with you again. I imagine that you must be slightly displeased to be hearing from us again but I feel it is the only way we can adequately communicate. I have a proposition to make to you, if you will listen. We've recently been monitoring your progress against the infamous Kira and your vendetta against the Task Force in Japan. So…if I were to tell you that I suspect one of the very own Task Force members…what would you say?_

_Other than that, I would like to commend you on your exclusively unique hacking skills. I admire the wat you got into the Task Force database. We've been monitoring it for sometime waiting for something suspicious to come up (not that you're that suspicion we have) in case there's more of a break through in the Kira Case. Unlike the Task Force, we're close to cracking the madman's identity."_

Did they know that she was Kuro? Oh wait. Dumb question to ask herself, Keegan rolled her eyes. _'Good thing I caught myself on that one.'_

"…_Kuro, or should I say 'Miss' Kuro. I say this because only a woman could have such anger and animosity towards a killer who has complete disregard for human feelings. After our last encounter, I don't think we made a lot of progress. Now, my proposition is this. We'd like to monitor your progress towards Kira. Since you made a wise decision to not strike an alliance with us, we'd like to ask instead of being our ally…if you'd be our tracking device. Otherwise we'd just like to admire your work from afar."_

She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I'm not gonna be you're fly camera on the wall, okay?" She said to a screen that wouldn't answer her. "Sorry. Again, I have to decline. I like it when you guys just sit back and watch from afar though. It makes me feel better when you're not in my face."

"_I understand if you'd like to decline our proposition, but just take some time to think it over. Oh, one more thing…Miss Kuro." _

She stopped before she was about to cut the message off.

"_You've got a nice cat."_

Keegan stared at the screen with interest. "Does Near know that Mr. Yagami is Kira?" She turned her head to look at Ryuk, who had returned back to his original shinigmi state. "I think Near's known all along. It is like you said before he's like a child prodigy."

"He's smart then." Keegan said, tapping her fingers against the keyboard lightly as 'N' continued to speak in his recording.

"I know he's smart Keegan, but I don't think he's as smart as you." Ryuk snickered.

"I'm street smart because I've known TJ all my life." Keegan chuckled, "That doesn't count."

"Sure it does, you can bribe people, you've basically bargained with the devil in a sense, you make up the most believable lies, and you hustle well." He leaned in her line of vision to watch the screen. "You're not just book smart or street smart Keegan, you've got a lot of common sense in your head."

"Is that a compliment?" Keegan turned her head to look at him, push him out of the way of the screen, and shake her head at him. "No wait, I take that back. You're sucking up for something. What do you want? Because if it's another kiss, it's not happening." Turned back to the computer in annoyance. "That's pushing it, Ryuk. We just started this thing together."

All right, this was true. After the incident with Joe, he knew Keegan didn't want to rush into anything. It didn't feel too bad, considering that Ryuk had no idea what to do since Keegan had said they were going to start dating. They didn't have to do anything at this point because Keegan didn't seem too interested in making fun of him for actually having these weird kinds of feelings he was unsure of in his gut how to use said feelings.

"So…what are you gonna do about Near?" He asked.

"…He's just going to have to watch." Keegan took a random picture of Lucil being rather cute and hooked her camera up to the computer and the black background with the backwards-white K was brought up again.

"Good call. You know…you're actually starting to smell like apples…" Back in his human form, Keegan could feel his hot breath near her cheek and she frowned before pushing him away from her.

"…You're breath stinks."

--

It was late. If Aizawa could recall perfectly he'd never felt so tired before in his entire life while he stayed up, smoking cigarette after cigarette to relieve the stress on his mind. This email was going to take forever if he didn't think of how he was going to type it up. Light's behavior towards Kuro was becoming suspicious, even more so than he usually had been of Light lately. It didn't make sense. How could someone who was saving lives be some suicidal nut case trying to lure Kira out of hiding? It didn't add up and Kuro's messages seemed to be specifically targeting the Task Force for some reason, not because Kuro wasn't fond of he Task Force, but because Kuro knew something they didn't.

Kuro was trying to tell them something that Light and the other Task Force members didn't understand. He tapped his fingers in annoyance while his dark eyes stared at the computer screen and the beginning few paragraphs of his email. Light wouldn't suspect Aizawa if he used his home computer to message the SPK. It just seemed only natural that he would. Everything started going downhill from this point. Miss Takada being kidnapped then her untimely death. It just seemed all too unusual to not begin to wonder if you're even playing for the right team anymore. Aizawa was conflicted and it hurt. It hurt to think that all of this could be a horrible misunderstanding…or that Kira had been under his nose all along and he desperately wanted to believe it couldn't be true.

When he logged onto the database to stare at all the little pictures of Kuro-neko he found one that actually caught his attention. It was one that he hadn't seen on there until now. When he enlarged the image, he found the black cat's face seemingly mischievous and it was kind of entertaining when he found the words: 'Kuro PWNS Kira' written in the picture. Light might not like that if he saw it, but Aizawa didn't bother to mess with it. He had to get back on the task at hand. It was a tough decision but…

"I have to."

With that said, the message was sent.

--

Getting back home, he found that his troubles were not over. Misa was scrubbing the carpet. Misa was actually doing something useful besides being an annoying pest and loyal lapdog? Light cocked his head to the side with odd curiosity as he watched her dip a floor brush into a bucket of hot water and then…scrub vigorously at the floor. It was hard to see through the suds but eventually Light could make out blue ink and he knew something had happened.

"Ah! Misa! What did you do?"

"Me?!" Misa's head snapped up instantaneously and she felt her lip quiver. "It didn't work! Light, the notebook didn't work! Those criminals came right back to life!" She sounded like she would start crying if Light got angry all of the sudden.

"Ugh…" He sapped a hand to his forehead and rubbed his temples. "Kuro's making a fool out of me." He started pacing, leaving Misa to just go back to scrubbing the carpet vigorously in an attempt to get the ink up out of it. It was strange to see Ligh so stressed over someone that was counteracting his power. Who could dare mess with her darling, dear? Who would want to stop her beloved in his duty to making the world a better place?

"Maybe I could use the shinigami eyes." She suggested. It seemed like a good idea, but Light's next words were kind of a disappointment.

"No."

"What?"

"We don't even have a face to put on Kuro. Some believe Kuro's a woman; some believe Kuro's a man. So we don't have any leads. I've had to cancel the Kuro case at work so that no one suspects me of being Kira. I've tried everything. Mikami's tied up right now because he's been working around his own little system with his Death Note." Light didn't know what to do right now. "Unless…"

Misa watched him travel into the next room and retrieve his own Death Note. "Unless I combine forces…Use three Death Notes at the same time. I'd like to see Kuro top that." He grinned to himself in such a snarky and admiring manner. "Misa,"

The scrub brush was slippery in her hands and she caught it before it fell into the bucket. "Huh? Oh! Yes?"

"Get your Death Note. I've got a text message to send." Light grinned to himself.

--

The phone beeped several times until Mikami turned over in his bed and pressed a button on his cellphone to which the message popped up. Tired eyes briefly skimmed over it before he dropped his phone between the sheets and sat up immediately in bed. "My God." He whispered.

"He's calling me."

--

"Once again, I see you've decided to contact me. Unfortunately I will not discern my gender or my identity to you, Mr. N. I feel it only best to keep myself well hidden. I do trust that your intentions are naturally good and do not wish y any harm, but as for any form of negotiations or assistances, I cannot allow any contact between us except in messages such as this. I will accept the fact that you plan to watch my movements from afar. I commend you for being so polite in asking first. As always, courtesy and manners count in my book.

I do believe you if you say you know who Kira is though. I have no doubts Mr. N that we suspect the same person of being Kira. I do thank you for the compliment on Kuro-neko. He's such a rascally little scamp and he's fun to photograph." There was obvious humor in the computerized voice.

"Until then yes, you ay watch my progress from afar. Please do not intervene in my mission. I KNOW what I am doing. That is all. Farewell."

Near stared at the large over-sized screen with the Kuro-Cat Chess Piece in his fingers while he was fiddling with a train-set. "I see…Miss Phelps, if she is Kuro, obviously found interest in me calling her 'Miss Kuro' rather than just Kuro. Unlike the Task Force we've been able to trace back the hacking records to a specific laptop brand that's well over a few years old, though not in any context antique. Have we any information on the brand or programming of this particular computer?" He asked Miss Lidner.

It had been a rough few weeks, after the botched up kidnapping of Miss Takada by Mello, everything had all come down and hit Miss Lidner hardest when she found out Mello was dead. It felt like a nightmare but she didn't want to even begin to think any more about it. "Hm? Oh. Yes. It's a Dell brand Windows 2000 laptop. An Inspiron 700m." She answered, a little disoriented.

"See, it's a few years old." Near said, turning to face Gevanni.

"Hm. Yes. The buyer's records say it came from a Best Buy in the exact same town Miss Phelps lives in. It was bought back in 2001 by a Carol Phelps." Gevanni was skimming over the records as he spoke.

"Carol Phelps must be the aunt that Miss Phelps is living with." Near mumbled. He looked down at the chess piece in his hand and put it on the toy train-set. "Hmm…"

"Sir?" Miss Lidner said, curiously as Near moved the toy around and then stopped it at the chess board that had all of the little members of the Task Force, the SPK, Kira, Mikami, Light, and Misa on it. Taking the Kuro-cat chess piece from it, he put it on the board and moved it towards the Mikami piece.

"I believe that if Kuro struck at not only the first Kira but also the 2nd Kira that came to defend the first Kira's actions. I believe that Mr. Mikami…in his current suspicious behavior…will be the next to feel Kuro's wrath."

"We have a message from Mr. Aizawa of the Task Force." Gevanni said suddenly.

Near's head perked up. "I think that should just about do it for today."

--

It was cold that day, it wasn't a good idea to go out on the bike, so what Keegan had done was get a tarp out of the basement and cover the bike with it. Her coat was zipped up tight while Ryuk watched her from the front step. He could see her warm breath in the cold air while she made sure the bike was covered at all ends. "Where'd you learn to cover a vehicle down like that?" He asked curiously.

Keegan perked her head up and turned it to look at him. "Aren't you cold?"

Ryuk shrugged. "I'm a shinigami, I don't feel weather effects like you do." Even though Ryuk didn't want to admit it, it was cold.

She rolled her eyes. "Oh right. Forgot about that."

"Where'd you learn to do that?" He asked her again, returning to the topic of the tarping down the bike.

"Hm? Oh. TJ. He's always had a little bit of a criminal side to him, so when we were in high school he used to take me to Crazy Ray's car junk yard and we'd tarp down certain cars the owner didn't want getting weather damaged. We made a couple dollars, he stole a few parts when I wasn't paying attention…" Keegan shrugged, coming back towards the front door.

Still in his 'Roy' state, Ryuk shook his head. "TJ's got some problems?"

Keegan opened the door and they went back inside. "He's had some problems in the past. I kept him from getting involved in a gang in the ghetto in Cincinatti, this is a true story too." She stepped into the kitchen and opened the fridge and took out the jog of apple cider. "Here." She poured him a cup and put it in the microwave. "It's really good hot. Not like apple juice." She chuckled.

"So what happened in this story?"

"I was a freshmen in college, and he was junior in high school, so what happened is I drove him into the city to do some Christmas shopping for his mom. We got lost, ended up in the ghetto. His dumb self brought a pocketknife with him just because he was that scared. He's lived in Jefferton all his life and he's never been to the ghetto, except in Uruguay with his grandmother when he was kid but this was his first trip to the ghetto. We were there and we ran into a couple of guys who started harassing me, and my response was cool and casual until TJ got over protective and got in one of the guy's faces. He thought he was badass because his skin was darker than theirs and unpleasant cursing ensued. To which my response was seeing a cop car in the alley we got lost in and I subsequently shouted: 'COP!'" Keegan explained, taking the cup out of the microwave and handed it to Ryuk.

"Don't burn your tongue again, please?"

He took the cup from her with a smirk. "I think I've learned my lesson. What happened next?"

"Well, they took off and the cops outside the alleyway got out of their car and ran at us. That was the time TJ ended up almost spending the night in jail on 'false charges of possession'." Keegan laughed softly. "Sad thing was, he got stuck in the same cell with those guys and he had nice conversation with them. They told him about their little gang and TJ thought it was the coolest thing ever." The memory brought back worry about TJ.

"He's like the little brother I never had. The cops were interviewing me on what had gone on and there were 'witnesses' that saw us get lost and told them that we were just looking for directions. I said the same thing, so did TJ and he got out. The cops only charged a hundred bucks for me to get him out of the cell because it was a false charge and those same cops were later laid off the next day because of what happened with TJ."

"They put you in cuffs too?" Ryuk snorted.

Keegan shook her head. "No. I mean. I had a clean record; one of those cops was Paul, Rico's dad. He's back on the force though. Back then he didn't know TJ. When he was introduced to the family, he freaked when he saw TJ and TJ freaked when he saw him."

Ryuk lifted the mug up to his lips. "He acts like he wants to be your boyfriend sometimes."

"So do you." Keegan chuckled.

Ryuk frowned. "Not funny. Because we're 'dating' and I'm not exactly fond of having to be reminded of these feelings. I'm a shinigami, we're not supposed to have these feelings." He put the mug down.

"Then why do you?" Keegan put her hands on her hips in curiosity.

"I don't know, but you're starting to smell like an apple." Ryuk pointed out awkwardly.

"I'm Irish, I've got red hair, I curse in Celtic so mom won't punish me in the after life if I say those curse words in English. My favorite color is green (not because I'm Irish) and I use that Irresistible Apple lotion from Bath and Body works. Maybe THAT's why I smell like apples Ryuk." Keegan pointed out.

"I think you had Cherry Chapstick on last night." He pointed out suddenly in reference to that much-unwanted kiss Keegan had not expected. She spun her head to stare at him in annoyance.

"Nuh-uh."

"Cherry chapstick tastes a lot like apples you know Keegan." Ryuk grinned.

"Ugh…" She grimaced. "No, I'm not letting you kiss me again." She pointed out. "Not to be mean, but no…"

"Who's Tyler?" Ryuk asked, "Funny, you're aunt told me you have a cousin named Tyler, you never mentioned any one else in your family." He sipped the mug of apple cider while giving her a suspicious look.

Keegan frowned at this question. "I thought you would have forgotten about that this morning when Aunt Carol clearly didn't want to talk about him. Don't you think I don't want to talk about him?" She asked.

"What happened to him?"

"Tyler's not part of this family any longer. He's just a troublemaker that likes causing problems for everyone. He doesn't care about Aunt Carol. All he cares about is getting her will that just leaves this house and all of her belongings to him." Keegan frowned.

"…I'm guessing your aunt must have re-written it for you." Ryuk stared into the contents of the mug. He was almost out of the cider in his cup.

"…Is it all right if we don't talk about this subject any more? I'm not up for talking about my cousin." She turned the light off in the kitchen and went into the living room.

It always seemed like she avoided things on purpose in her life, it was starting to get on his nerves. He finished the rest of the contents in cup and slammed it down on the counter. "Keegan, you're gonna have to start facing your problems instead of running away from them."

She stopped in her tracks and turned to look at Ryuk with a smirk. "I'm not running…I'm waiting."

What was that supposed to mean? All right, now she had him confused. "Waiting? Waiting for what?" He asked.

"Mr. Yagami is my only problem about now. I'm waiting for his next move. I don't have to worry about Joe, or my cousin, or my parents. Ryuk, I'm gonna save this world if it's the last thing I do on this planet."

Sure enough when Keegan had turned on the t.v:

"A flourish of Kira attacks have started bombarding nations everywhere and their criminals are falling down one by one. We ask, just who on Earth is this 'Kira' and what kind of maniacal power does just one person have to make deaths happen everywhere. CNN news, we'll be back more on this story."

Keegan cocked her head to the side at this recent news report and scowled at the television. "He and Miss Amane must have combined forces."

"I think he put Mikami in there too just for shits and giggles." Ryuk frowned at the screen and Keegan whipped out the Life Script. "I think it's time Mr. Yagami and I had a talk." It became clear that Keegan was going to have to work double-overtime to get these names of the criminals that were being killed. Getting the names in the U.S and the Task Force database would be no trouble, other countries. "I have a little problem."

"It's nothing you can't handle, Keegan. You can do this." Keegan stared down at the Life Script in her hands and opened it. There were two new rules in the book and she read them clearly.

Their etchings were still warm:

Rule 16: The user of the Life Script may trade half the life span added on by the Life Script to them for Shinigami eyes without risking their normal life span. The use of Shinigami eyes is not just limited to Death Notes.

Rule 17: The Life Script's use of shinigami eyes is limited, use with caution.

Keegan's brow cocked. "What? What's that mean, use 'shinigami eyes with caution'?"

"It means, if you traded the life span added on by the Life Script to your original life span, you'd be able to use shinigami eyes for a temporary time. After their use, you get that life span back because the book gave the added on life span to you, not me. It's cautioning you because the use of shinigami eyes with the Life Script drains you of energy. You'll be fine, but it's feeding off your emotions Keegan, that's they way it seems to me." Ryuk explained. "You said you didn't want to use the Shinigami eyes before…why now?" Ryuk asked.

Keegan stared at the notebook with a frown. "…I don't have a choice now. If I want all of those names…" Keegan flipped to a clean page in the notebook. "I have to trade." She held her hand out for Ryuk to shake.

He smacked her hand away. "I can't do that that Keegan. I can't let you trade for shinigami eyes if there's going to be a downside."

"But Ryuk-"

"I could get those names for you." He grabbed her hands suddenly. "Let me help you this time. You told me before you need to do this job alone. Yet at the same time you had me be your errand boy and secret spy almost. I'm sick of sitting around and doing nothing to help you, Keegan." He growled.

She noticed the unusual warmth from his hands and she looked down at their hands together. "You're holding my hands…and your own hands are warm."

He hadn't noticed before but they did feel unusually warmer than usual and Ryuk shrugged. "Must have been from the mug. No big deal."

"Yeah right…Well, I've got some contacting to do to Mr. Yagami, but first…I need Mr. N to monitor my conversation."

--

"Sir! We've picked up a Kuro transmission." Gevanni exclaimed, looking at the screen, as it turned black with the backwards-white K. "It's a live-stream."

Near sat up straight with his finger twirling around that particular lock of hair by his ear again. "Miss Kuro…"

"_Mr. N_…_"_

"Yes?"

"_Though we are not in any negotiations or alliance…I have a proposition for you. This can be an opportunity to 'watch'. I'm going to contact Kira now. Would you mind sitting back and just monitoring the conversation while I deal with him personally on a very important matter?"_

"Now, you ARE technically negotiating with us." Near chuckled.

"_This is only a compromise…Nothing more. Watch and learn."_

"You have our undivided attention, Miss Kuro."

"_Good."_

--

The copied earlier Kuro messages had been sent to him at this ungodly hour in the morning and Mikami's face was livid as he listened to Kuro mock his God continually. At the same time Mikami felt that he himself was being taunted with the way Kuro was speaking.

"Youuuuu caaaan't catch meeee. Nanny-nanny boo-boo. Youuuu can't catch meeee."

Mikami had all ready done what his god had asked that night, so why should he feel threatened if Kuro didn't know who he was?

He stared at the Death Note in his possession and opened it. "What being mocks you? My God?"

--

"You think I'm just going to sit back and watch you eliminate all of those souls from this planet? You've crossed me for the last time Kira. I swore to myself that should you try something like this again, I was going to kick you back hard. You've evoked my fury this time. Now that you've heard my anger, feel it. I'm going to slam you into the ground so hard this time that I think even your ancestors may crawl out of their graves to pull you into the depths of hell for what you've done. I told you, when I lie in wait…you should be very afraid of me.

I'm going to make sure that your soul rolls over in your grave before you do…Kira. I know who you are, I know where you are, and I'm going to bring you down if it's the last thing I do."

Light stared at the screen of his laptop after the message went off and several spammed pictures of Kuro-neko were all over the Task Force database had popped up again, only this time they were all over the background and they all said the same thing: 'Kuro PWNS Kira'

Misa had gone to bed not too long after they had written all of those names down in their Death Notes. The only thing that was on Light's mind now was to figure out when Kuro was going to strike next and figure out HOW Kuro could try to bring back all of those criminals that were killed worldwide. "Hmm…"

There was an eerie silence…and then…

"_I know you're there…Kira." Kuro spoke suddenly_

He got quiet suddenly when the computer screen was talking to him. "Kuro…"

"_I figure I'd get a chance to speak with you, before I struck back at you. Do you know…what a Life Script is?"_

Light gave a glare at the computer screen. "A Life Script?"

"_Oh yes, Kira. I mean a Life Script. I know how you've been killing all of those criminals and I'm very upset with you. So if I all ready know that you're using a special power to kill all of these criminals, I feel it's only fair you should now what I use to bring back all of those you kill, how I perform my miracles, and how I keep people from your wrath. Unlike your power that seems to be in many fake Kiras, there's only one Life Script. So don't even bother trying to ask any divine being for it. You won't get it."_

"All right Kuro, let's talk then. You seem like a very intelligent person, so far. Why don't you tell me how you got your Life Script then? I can only assume a shinigami gave you The Life Script."

"_I'll never tell, after all. I'm sworn to secrecy. Best friends never tell on each other."_ Kuro answered. _"Like I said…divine intervention bestowed this notebook to me, an angel gave it to me."_

"An angel? I find that hard to believe." Light scoffed.

"_You and I believe in two different religions Kira, you have either Buddhism or Shintoism and I have a widely used religion, as you can tell by the Bible."_

"It's hard to say, two kinds of religions use a bible…" Light said curiously.

"_You know, you cannot hear my true voice and I cannot hear your true voice. So, your identity is safe from any hackers that I might have told to come into your system." _Kuro chuckled.

Light looked around suspiciously and ran a diagnostic quickly on his computer. No sign of hacking. "You…"

"_Just kidding. I work alone. I need no one's help." _Kuro assured. _"You know, the SPK is quite interested in my actions towards you."_

"I'm sure you're in allegiance with them." Light sneered.

"_Wrong…As you usually are with me. I told you, I work alone…" _Kuro corrected him.

"You work alone except for the fact that you have 'divine intervention' on your side." Light scoffed. "I'm sure you do…" Typical sarcasm. "Is your divine intervention source an ugly one?"

--

Keegan grit her teeth at the computer screen before she felt Ryuk's spindly fingers suddenly settle over her clenched fist. How dare he talk about Ryuk as if he were some animal to throw on the side of the road after shooting it?

She looked up at the shinigami sitting next to her. He was encouraging enough to keep her temper down. She pulled her hand out from beneath his and nodded.

Keegan took a deep breath and turned her attention back to the screen.

"I told you, an angel gave it to me."

"_You're not a very good liar, Kuro." _Kira sneered.

"I'm better at lying than you are. I know who you are, Kira. You have no where to run when I get through with you." Keegan hummed softly without worry.

"_And just HOW do you plan to locate me?"_ Kira snarled.

"Mr. Kira…Please, temper. It's unbefitting of you. I don't tolerate rudeness." She wagged her finger in the air. "I'm a very civil person. I'd appreciate it if you showed me some common courtesy. Didn't your mommy raise you better than that?"

--

Light glowered at the screen, clutching the laptop tightly in his hands while he grit his teeth. Kuro was going to badmouth him now? That wasn't going to be tolerated.

"_I guess not."_

"You have no idea how deep you are in this situation, Kuro. You have no idea of the likes your dealing with." Light argued. "Who do you think you are?"

"_I AM LIFE!"_ Kuro roared suddenly. _"Never speak down to me, Death cannot last forever Mr. Kira, I promise you that. Death will come inevitably for every human being on this planet, but it should not come so quickly when it is not that person's time. Even when a person dies, death does not last for afterlife does exist." _Light drew back from Kuro's fury.

"I am God. How do you compete with that?" Light laughed.

"…_How can you call yourself God when you don't act like one? You just pretend to be a God because you have a power given to you that doesn't belong in your hands in the first place." _Kuro advised. _"Take caution, Mr. Kira. I'm not going to ask you to keep your tone again."_

"_You_ must pretend you're a god in some sense if you have the power to give Life, Kuro. How can you call yourself a God?" Light looked away from the screen.

"_I never have called myself a God. You and I are just as mortal as anyone else, Mr. Kira. Everyone's life has to come to an end at some point."_

--

"_Yours will too if you continue to act against my power."_ Kira warned.

"I have utmost confidence that you won't even touch me. Heh. I know who you are, but you don't even know who I am." Keegan held in her laughter while she looked over at Ryuk.

Ryuk was shaking his head at her. _'Come on Keegan, don't burst into laughter yet. You'll get yourself in a world of trouble.'_

"_You'll probably use the Life Script on yourself."_

"I don't need to use it on myself. I have divine intervention, listen, Mr. Kira Your hearing is fading quite rapidly." She pointed out.

"_Now, you're just mocking me."_

"It's my favorite thing to do."

--

Near adjusted his headset carefully as he listened in on the conversation. He was used to the garbled voices speaking back and forth to each other. It just all seemed like a matter of time until it came down to that very wire.

"She's good…" He chuckled. "A little too good for him. I wonder what Miss Kuro's planning to do. She's probably trying to push him to his limit until he snaps."

--

"_Tell me, Mr. Kira…if every criminal died in this world…how would police officers keep their jobs?" _

Light sneered. "They can find new ones. They won't have to worry about evil in this world anymore. I'm taking care of that. And YOU'RE messing it up."

"_The world has been put out of order, Mr. Kira. You've messed it up, and I'm just righting what you've wronged."_

"HOW DARE YOU-"

"_This conversation is terminated, you've been rude to me for the last time, Mr. Kira. Goodnight."_

_--_

Authoress Note: Sorry for this long chapter guys (I do like it when the chapters are long though). My Microsoft Word had an error in it and I was messing with the format to see if I could help shorten it any. Well, I think that it turned out well either way. Oh well, I think this one didn't turn out as well as I'd liked it too but I think it's okay, not the greatest but, eh. It's all up to you guys to tell me what you think. Thanks! Read and review.


	22. First Date Mishaps

Authoress Note: WOW! Over 90 reviews now guys! Thanks so much! We're almost at 100! We're almost done with the story…or maybe we're not. Teehee. I'll never tell, aww! Thanks guys!

Reviewer Acknowledgement:

Jillian Jiggs: Well, if you were any smart person, would you want your boyfriend or girlfriend getting shinigami eyes? Wouldn't you want t hem to live a long life? (flails arms in panic) Don't trade for them! I don't recommend it. Owo; I think I need to go lie down. I'm sugar

High today. Glad you liked the 'Kuro pwns Kira' asset I added. I like that part too. I can't say I hate Mikami, but I won't say I like him. Thanks though!

PiScEs-BlOsSoM69: I decided it would be best to not put Mello into the story because I have no idea how to work his character. I thought I would know how but he's an enigma in himself. At least with Near, I can work with because he has a bit of a personality. Mello's attitude is like an angry brick wall and I didn't want to mess him up. So I described his and Takada's deaths very discretely because 1. I hate Takada because she's a useless whore that the Death Note series didn't really need. 2. I didn't want to major mess up Mello's characterization if I put him in the story. So my apologies on that part. Thanks though.

Sahxyel: I think you may take interest in this chapter and some criticism of it too. Either way I thought I'd give you something to sink your teeth into because I think this chapter IS quite adventurous. You'll have to read for yourself to find out. Muahah. Ah, yes. Light being the last criminal left. It's like a paradox, you know? Light being that paradox if he's a criminal in himself getting rid of all the criminal sin the world. Aww. (pets) I love you as my little grammar mole; I think it's rather helpful of you. So far you've helped me watch my grammar more carefully than usual. So I'm enjoying the fact I'm re-reading the chapters over again before I put them in. I think I'm getting better at this! Thanks.

Sharnii Brooke: I don't know if baby-making between these two should even happen. I mean, I think it would be interesting but I think I still want to stick to that one little rule in the Death Note about shinigamis and no sex. Oh! Oh! It could be like in the '40 Year-old-Virgin'! "Well…instead of intercourse…you can have…outer course." Lol. Yeah, that's it. All though not nearly as satisfying. Hmm…Oh well.

KakaIru-luver: Ooh! You do fanart? I'd love to see your deviantart account, I have one too. I still have to post the Life Script up…In fact I think I'll go do that now. Oooh! (excitedly jumps up and down) Fan art alert! Fan art alert folks! We have a fan artist in the house! (applauds) I'd love you forever if you would!

Enjoy Chapter 22 guys.

--

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps) and others, belong to me. Thanks._

--

She was staring at the screen with her gaze fiery and all Keegan could do was sit there fuming and looking red in the face. For about a good few minutes she sat there in silence. When Ryuk cleared his throat though Keegan slammed her laptop shut. "AGH! I hate him, I hate him, I hate him, I hate him!" She screamed until Ryuk had to hit her in the back of the head to calm her down.

"HEY! Get hold of yourself, it's okay." He tried to assure her. "Stop letting him get under your skin every time he-"

Keegan scowled down at the floor. "He has no regard for life whatsoever Ryuk, he acts so inhumane…"

"Well…tch. Shinigami do that too but-"

She gave him this look as if to tell him to shut up before she bowed her head in silence when he closed his mouth. "But…that's your nature. You guys don't have anything else to do but that."

"Nah. Well, I've got plenty of things to do; I don't HAVE to take life. I haven't been for a long time, even before I gave Light the Death Note. Have you seen me kill any humans?" He was trying to justify his behavior. "You're not acting like yourself today Keegan, what's wrong?"

There was a long pause of silence before she answered: "…Today's the day my parents died." She mumbled.

It didn't take much to figure out then that Keegan wasn't only trying to avoid things today, she was trying to forget about things too. "…I'm sorry Keegan." Ryuk apologized. Wow, this was awkward. What more do you say when today's a practical death anniversary? "…I really am, and I'm not one that likes to apologize."

"It's not your fault. You didn't have anything to do with them dying." Keegan sighed. "I don't think any shinigami did." Keegan sighed. "It's all right. There's nothing I can do. They're dead. It's going to stay that way." She picked up the Life Script again and stared at a clean page she would have to write on soon. "I can't help it. I miss them, but if they weren't dead, I wouldn't be who I am today."

"You'd be just as boring as every other human on this planet." Ryuk responded, unenthusiastically.

"Exactly." Keegan said, leaning back against the couch. "…How many countries did he strike?"

"If it's Light, I only assume big ones." Ryuk tried to divulge what he knew.

"The U.K, America, Japan, Russia…Big nations?" She stared at the white ceiling in contemplation. She saw the texture of it differently before she sat up.

"You can't just sit around and do nothing Keegan. You've got a job to do." He reminded her, throwing the Life Script into her lap. "Why did you tell Light you had the Life Script, anyways?" Ryuk asked out of curiosity. "I mean, you could have possibly written yourself a Death Sentence."

"To mess with him, to make him realize that he's up against big competition. He can't beat me. It doesn't matter what he does because-"

"You're a diabolical genius?" He poked her in the arm with a chuckle. "Come oooon. Come oooon. Genius?"

Keegan shook her head with a small smile. "I'm not a genius Ryuk. That's just you being too nice to me." She brushed him off.

"Well, if you're not a genius, then how come it's taken Light so long to find you?" Ryuk stared up at the ceiling with disinterest before glancing at Keegan.

"Because he's an idiot." Keegan giggled. "He's an absolute and complete idiot…and I'm making him look even stupider by making him hopelessly search for me and figure me out in a wild goose chase."

"…I really wish we weren't stuck in here today. It's boring in this damn house. I wanna ride my bike." Ryuk sighed, picking up the remote control before turning the t.v on to the channel Keegan last had it on.

"You mean the bike you STOLE." She pointed out. "That guy's gonna find out eventually."

"Hey…CNN's on. You want me to get the names of those guys for you?" Ryuk asked, pointing at the t.v to change the subject.

It was a tough call. But staring at the screen she realized that it would be kind of easy. Ryuk was willing to use the Shinigami eyes himself to get the names off the faces of these guys. "…Yeah." Keegan murmured. "That sounds good."

Ryuk pressed the pause button and she saw the light of his eyes turn a bright red. "You ready?"

Keegan picked up her pen and started to write down the names Ryuk told her in the Life Script. "I'm sure Mr. Yagami is in for a rude awakening…in my own personal words, he can _suck it_, "

--

The next hour was crucial because Light had finally thought he was going to get some sleep. After just settling into bed, he had just awoken to a horrible screeching and spurting noise from in his dresser drawer. Light hopped out of bed and wrenched the drawer open to reveal his Death Note thrashing around violently before it flew out of the drawer and lay sprawled out on the floor. Light beheld it beginning to drag itself around like a wild animal and thrash around on the floor. Red sparks began flying off the pages that Light had written the names on and ink began exploding rapidly from the book. A short distance away he could hear Misa screaming.

In the other room, her own Death Note looked like it was having a literal seizure on the floor. She had started throwing several objects at the screeching notebook and hiding from it.

The notebook threw itself at the wall and began spinning around on the floor before ink began seeping out all over the floor violently.

Light took one look at his own Death Note before rushing into the other room to look at Misa's spouting ink all over the place like his own was.

"Mikami…" He whispered. "Yours is probably…"

--

Something had awoken him and he didn't like the awful sound it was making. The notebook was beating itself against his ceiling while ink began erupting out if it like a volcano. He watched bright red crackles pop like fireworks while black ink became smeared all over his ceiling as it dragged itself above him.

"AAH! What is this?!" Mikami sat up in his bed and yelled at the top of his lungs while looking at this strange sight with both horror and fascination. "This challenger's power is true then." Mikami watched his Death Note drop lifelessly to the floor. "My God. What are we up against?"

When he was sure it was safe to pick up, Mikami stared at it before getting out of bed to retrieve it. "I have to put this back in the safety deposit box tomorrow. It's not safe here if it's going to act like that. First I need to clean up this mess."

--

He wouldn't get any sleep over this and Misa was in a state of shock because her notebook still lay twitching on the floor. All Light could do now was get that steam cleaner from the closet and set to work again for the 3rd time cleaning up the mess Kuro had made here for him.

'_Kuro's going to pay for this. PAY!'_

--

She put the Life Script down before she got too excited about what she had done. "Hmm…" She counted the names over before she closed the notebook. "That's about 100 or so criminals." Keegan read. "Wow."

They were sitting there on her couch in silence before Ryuk took the Life Script from her. Back in his human façade form, he had the notebook open on his lap. He double checked to make sure those numbers were correct. "Light had about 10 whole pages almost filled with criminals' names when he first found my Death Note, that was before I said he could use it though. I think I should have taken it back from him, maybe. Then again…I think you've done a great job in righting that mistake." He chuckled.

"…I feel like we're getting closer to making him come out in the public." He heard Keegan say. Ryuk glanced over at her before he murmured something unintelligible.

"Hm? Did you say something?" Keegan said, looking at Ryuk.

"…You wanna rent a movie?" He muttered.

Aw. Listening to how horribly awkward it must have been to ask that, the poor thing. His reluctance to ask sounded kind of sweet in a sense when Keegan looked at him funny before she shrugged. "We don't need to rent a crappy movie when I still have the set from you-know-who."

Ryuk's head snapped to look at her directly with that same dangerous scowl on his face when she had mentioned him the night before, despite the fact she hadn't said his name she still made reference to him. "What did we talk about when mentioning him?"

Keegan closed her mouth and held up a different movie to him. "Relax, I was kidding. I sold the set he gave me to the video store down the street. I've got my own stock anyways."

"Of crappy 80s movies, Keegan?" Ryuk looked at her skeptically. "What is your fascination with stupid movies like that?"

"I was born in the 80s. Gimme a break." She popped the movie she had picked out into the Playstation and pushed play.

"So…what are we watching?" Ryuk asked curiously, merely stretching his arms out carefully trying to avoid putting an arm around her but temptation was too much. The title came up: "Oh. Alien invaders huh?"

"James Cameron's _Aliens_." Keegan nodded.

"Is this a crappy horror movie too?" He asked.

"Actually…I think this might scare the hell out of anybody." Keegan warned. "Even you."

"…If it gets too scary…do you want me to hold you?" Ryuk smirked.

"Don't push it pal." Keegan warned when she saw where his arms were behind he couch. "Put them in your lap."

Ryuk begrudgingly obliged as the movie began. Just the beginning of it proved better than the other crappy movie they had watched over a month ago. This one was actually pretty decent. It got even better though when he realized that this movie was pretty scary. "Damn, Keegan. This is some pretty gory stuff. This is an 80s movie?"

"Pretty good special effects huh?" She turned to him with a smile. "I love Sigourney Weaver. She's such a good actress. It's depressing, the _Alien_ genre went downhill when they made _Alien versus Predator_. It wasn't too bad, but I heard Requiem was a disaster."

"You're a movie dork aren't you Keegan?" Ryuk teased.

"…Yeah. I guess I am. I always have been. I'm a sucker for 2-D animation in Disney Movies and rare occasion 3-D animation with Pixar in Disney movies. It's kind of sad. I feel pathetic." She continued to watch the movie.

"Was…_he_ your only boyfriend, Keegan?" Ryuk asked, angry to even think about Joe.

She turned to him and stayed rather quiet. It was kind of embarrassing to admit, but Ryuk hadn't judged her, he was judging Joe. "…Yeah. Joe was my first and only boyfriend." She assured.

"I'm glad he can't hurt you anymore." Ryuk mumbled, obviously unused to such soft-spoken interaction with Keegan, he seemed a little embarrassed by it.

"It's all in the past Ryuk. I'm willing to start over again." She wasn't really interested in talking about Joe anymore, which suited Ryuk just fine.

"Well, if you said you didn't have time for a relationship before, why do you have time now?" Ryuk stared at the screen where the monstrosities were starting to come out of the walls and pick off the Marines one by one.

Keegan paused the movie before she turned to give Ryuk a smile. "Remember how you told me I wasn't Light?"

"Yeah?" Ryuk chuckled. "So?"

"Same here, you're not Joe." She said softly.

Ryuk scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, I'm glad I'm not either. Hey…ah…thanks, you know. For putting up with me the way you do. I don't think anybody's ever liked having me around this long before."

"We're dating, what do you expect?" Keegan chuckled.

"Slow progress." Ryuk laughed humorously.

Keegan did laugh at that. "Okay, that's true. I can't help that. I like to take my time with things."

"Wouldn't blame you." Ryuk sighed, staring at the screen as they sat there, listening to the pulse rifle fire like a machine gun when the main character went down into the lower levels of the colony complex to rescue the little girl. "What's the point in this part? She's saving a kid that's probably dead."

"She's saving her because the little girl was about the same age as her daughter was before she went into hyper sleep. Over 50 some years had passed and her daughter died, remember?" Keegan reminded him near the beginning of the movie.

"Oh. Right. So…"

"Little girl reminds her of her daughter." Keegan explained.

"You know more about this movie than you let on before." He frowned.

"I grew up in the 80s, Ryuk. I've seen almost every 80s movie possible." She was bragging a little bit now, but stopped herself before she got a little out of hand. Now that she thought about it…Ryuk didn't have any friends in the shinigami realm. Did shinigamis have other past times? "Hey, Ryuk. What do shinigamis do for fun?"

"There's not much to do in the shinigami realm, Keegan. It's a wasteland." He told her. "A desert almost. There's not much we can do. We don't sleep because that would make us seem lazy, and what little we do involves gambling parts of our life spans with other shinigamis. There's not much else."

"Wait. You guys have nothing to lose except your life spans, but you gamble them away anyways?" She paused the movie. "Did you gamble?"

"I find gambling boring and pointless." Ryuk waved the topic off. "Besides, you don't wanna go there. The shinigami realm's not much fun anyways."

"The shinigami realm…Could I see it for myself?" Keegan asked. "Would you take me there?"

Oh no. No. She hadn't asked that. Please, no. She couldn't have. Keegan wouldn't be that stupid. What the hell was she thinking? He had to do a double take to make sure that he had heard her right. Was she crazy? "Keegan, why the HELL would you want to take a field trip to a place like that?"

"I don't know, I'm bored and I don't want to do anything else, it's cold out, we can't ride your bike, and Aunt Carol's not gonna be home for a few hours. How many movies have we watched together since you've been here?" She pondered.

"You can't even remember can you? It wasn't that many." Ryuk started the movie from where they left off before thoughts of the shinigami realm could get back on her mind. "Let's just keep watching the movie. I wanna see how it ends." He made up an excuse.

"Yeah, you're right." Keegan sighed. "But I still wanna see it. You know?"

He dropped the remote suddenly. "Keegan, I'm NOT taking you to see the Shinigami Realm. Even if I did, do you know how many other shinigamis would try to kill you with their Death Notes?"

Keegan looked down at the Life Script before giving him a serious look. "Look, we can just pop there and come right back. I just want to take some pictures. Besides, this could be a 'first date' thing for us, you know?"

"You want our first 'date' to be in the shinigami realm?" Ryuk snapped. "You've lost it."

"You take me there or-"

"Or what?" Ryuk stood up, making Keegan realize just how much smaller she was by height standards. "What are you gonna do Keegan? I've figured a way out around the apple system. You deprive me of any apples, it'll put you in a guilt trip and because you care so much you'll have to feed me." He was good. Oh, that was probably the best way to get out of this.

Keegan crossed her arms in front of her. "You want this relationship to go further?" She asked.

"Hm?" Ryuk's brow cocked. "What are you up to?"

"Unless you want me to take back what I said about us dating yesterday." She said smugly.

So much for the guilt trip plan, Keegan had him hammered down there. He didn't want to give up that opportunity. Also other opportunities would be closed if he didn't cave in. "You REALLY wanna go there?" He asked warily. "I mean, if I take you there…everybody will be pissed."

"It was you that said: 'They can all go fuck themselves.'" Keegan quoted with a frowned. "So, yes. I still do, no I don't care about what they think or could do, and yes you do care about us dating." She grinned.

"…I hate you." Ryuk scowled.

"You could never hate me." She said, pinching his cheek in a joking manner.

--

It was a dark and desolate place. From the looks of it, it really did look like a desert and it smelled funny. Not that it was overbearing, but she felt like she'd seen worse. The trip here had not been so grand and Keegan didn't want to go through any details of mentally explaining how the trip was. Here, Ryuk could not maintain his human form and thus had to get them there as his normal self. It was fine though; Keegan didn't argue about it. It was normal.

Ryuk had been highly reluctant to bring her here; he hated this place enough as it was. There was a lot he had to be on the look out for. He was on edge while he kept looking around to make sure the coast was clear. No sign of any shinigamis yet. "You need to stay very quiet here." He pointed out with his jagged teeth scowling. "This is the ONLY time I do this."

She pulled the Life Script out from underneath her sweatshirt with a smile. "I've got it covered." She whispered. "Don't worry."

He recalled when they had first arrived, Keegan acquired motion sickness because she hated heights and puked when they arrived. Ryuk could tell that it wasn't a pretty sight at all.

"All right, let's go." He gestured for her to follow along.

"Why don't you show me where you first stole this thing from?" Keegan suggested, holding out the Life Script to him.

"Good idea, there's nobody around there." They walked, well Keegan did. Ryuk was pretty good at floating when it suited him. He didn't have to walk.

"I'm gonna assume this place has been around here forever?" She stated, looking down at the dusty ground and gray sand. "Gross. Desert sand has more appeal than this stuff."

"Like I said before: Why the HELL did you want to come here?" He reminded her, begrudgingly making sure to look around carefully.

They came upon the altar where Ryuk had first encountered the Life Script and Keegan stared at it. "And they just left it here?"

"Yep." He nodded.

"Under this nasty tree, with a bunch of shriveled up fruits as the 'guard' method?" She looked at it skeptically. "Come on, this book must have been more important than that to leave it lying around."

"Exactly what I say." Ryuk shrugged. "Can you blame me for taking it?"

"No…" Keegan said, looking at the Life Script in her hands. "But I'm glad you did." She looked over at him with a smile.

"Yeah, yeah. I hear ya. Just keep it down."

"So…how was the Life Script made?" She asked, flipping it open to look for any sort of answer in the notebook.

"There's a bunch of variations to the story. Some say it was made by a shinigami as a love token to a human,"

Keegan gave him a flat look with a shake of her head smiling. "Thanks for my present Ryuk." She laughed.

"Shut up. Don't say that here…" He shushed her. "Others say that The Shinigami King acquired it in a bargain with an angel. Don't know how that would work, but the Shinigami King can get anything if he wanted to. He thinks I'm pretty damn smart. I was able to trick him into getting TWO Death Notes."

Keegan frowned at him. "So you've always been a thief."

"Yeah, and a cheat. I cheat at a lot of things." He scratched the top of his head.

"Not in this relationship you won't. I'll kick your ass." She warned. Keegand stopped briefly because she heard voices and Ryuk had to act fast.

"Hide."

"Where?" She asked, her tone of voice explaining that her options were limited.

He pushed her behind the altar before the voices got louder.

--

"So somebody took it? Just like that?"

"Yeah. I mean, I sure as hell wouldn't use it. Whoever took it must have had a good reason for it or destroyed it. Don't need any humans coming back to life on us. We lose the added on life spans."

"But that's the thing! Our life spans HAVE been coming off. People HAVE been coming back to life. I think the Shinigami King's mad…Yeah, especially since everybody's in a bit of a frenzy now. I just wanna know who took the damn thing so I can get my Life spans back."

Keegan looked down at the Life Script in her hands and Ryuk looked back at her.

'_So wait…'_ She thought, opening the Life Script and scrolling through the list of rules. Rule # 17 was sitting there etching itself into the notebook just as Keegan had opened it. _'All humans killed by shinigamis with a Death Note have the life spans added on by the death of the human lives are null and void after a person is brought back with the Life Script.' _She had a panicked look on her face. _'Oh, shoot! It's just NOW telling me this?!'_

"Hey! Look who it is!" She heard one of the shinigamis shout at Ryuk. "Mr. I Dropped my Death Note."

They were making fun of him, no big deal. Ryuk could take it. "Oh, yeah. Hey."

"What brings you back here?" It was two of them. These shinigamis sure were a bit more decrepit looking than Ryuk though. One could have almost looked like one of the aliens from the movie they were just watching with his face the way it was, and he was hunched over carrying a scythe.

"Yeah Ryuk, last we heard you were somebody's 'pet'." They were laughing at him.

'_Assholes.' _Keegan thought to herself as she continued to listen.

The other just looked like a body with some kind of bovine skull with antlers on it. "So, get your Death Note back yet?"

"No. I'm just waiting around for it from the guy I'm lending it to. It's fun to watch. He's going crazy from it." Ryuk shrugged, he sounded bored. Like he didn't want to be here.

"_Say…_What are you doing by the Life Script's altar?"

"Hm?" Ryuk glanced at the altar and Keegan held her breath so nobody would hear her. "Oh, nothing really. I just got here. Where'd the book go anyways? Isn't it supposed to be here?"

"Tch. You didn't hear?" The one with the scythe pointed at the altar.

"Somebody stole it, was it you Ryuk?"

"How could I have? I've been in the Human world for so long I haven't been back here since I first dropped my Death Note." He growled. "Don't go pointing at me because I got two notebooks out of sheer wit by tricking the Shinigami King."

'_That's right; make a good plausible lie, Ryuk. That's the way to prove your innocence.' _Keegan clutched the Life Script to her.

"But, you have heard right?" The shinigami with the scythe asked.

"Heard what?" Ryuk said suspiciously.

"That the humans that we kill, the life spans that are added on to our own…They get taken back because those humans come back to life." He was told at a whisper.

"So?" Ryuk shrugged. "That just goes to show, we shouldn't leave important things lying about."

Something stunk really awful at that moment, Keegan almost gagged at it and she started coughing from the dust that had suddenly kicked up from the gust of wind that had just started to blow. She didn't know where that awful stench had come from but she had a feeling it was from one of the shinigamis standing there with Ryuk.

"HEY! What the hell was that?!"

Ryuk's attention snapped to Keegan, who couldn't stop coughing from the stench before the other shinigamis peered over the altar at her.

Keegan was met with the two ugly faces while holding the Life Script tightly in her fingers. "Oh, gross...Ever heard of hygiene fellas?" She groaned.

"Hey…What's a human doing here?"

"Ohh…I'm not a human." Keegan tried to explain. "I'm with the Spirit Court Association. I'm here on a survey errand from the archangels. I'm a poltergeist. I'm stuck in a parallel dimension." The Life Script was glowing in her hands.

They were looking right at it. The Life Script was right in front of them and couldn't tell whether it was it or not because the light around it was too bright. The two shingamis looked at each other and then at Ryuk. "Say what?" They said, not knowing what she was talking about.

"Oh…no…They sent another one." Ryuk grumbled. _'Whatever you've got going Keegan, I'll try to play along. That excuse didn't sound convincing.'_

"Another what?"

She stood to her feet, the notebook glowing in her hands, shielding the title of it from the other shinigamis. "Yes, yes. I know. Your kind hate it when the Spirit Court sends one of us down here to this…ugh…nasty place to do some work. It's mandatory. I couldn't get out of it. Sorry."

"If you're with this 'Spirit Court', how come we've never heard of it."

"They told me you shinigamis wouldn't know anything about us. We're strictly here on business, not for playtime." Keegan waved a hand at them, obviously annoyed by their presence as it is. Thank goodness for playing good side roles in her high school performances. "Mr. Ryuk here is my personal guide in this god forsaken, wasteland and I've still got a lot of landscaping survey to do…"

The shinigamis were scratching their heads in confusion. "What?"

"I have to test this place for any thing that's out of place besides myself…" She tried to say it with simpler vocabulary.

"Wait a minute, sister. If you're with this Spirit Court, why do you look so human?" She had that sharp and pointy scythe directed at her and Ryuk suddenly pushed it out of the way.

"The Spirit Court's filled with human souls. Don't you idiots know anything?" He grumbled.

"Well what about Mu?" She was asked.

"Oh, that? We had to have maintenance sent there. It's closed off. So the Spirit Society took over. Don't you know that not every soul HAS to go to Mu?"

"Not really…I mean, how are we supposed to know this stuff? We just stick around here and not much anywhere else. Ryuk is the one that travels a lot." The two shinigamis looked at each other strangely.

"You're not supposed to know this 'stuff'. Only higher up shinigami are supposed to know. You guys need to get an announcement system." She pointed out, opening the Life Script and pretended to write down a 'violation'. "That's a code violation." She hummed.

"Violation!?" They sounded outraged. "Look, missy. If you haven't noticed. This place isn't the nicest place. And…Ryuk's not a higher up shinigami…"

Keegan tapped her foot in annoyance. "Wow…I'm not surprised…" She said sarcastically. "You guys aren't blind either. I know he's not, but I demanded a lower level shinigami for a guide because lower level shinigami scour this place out more than higher up ones. Right?"

How Keegan managed to hit the nail on the head without knowing what she was talking about, Ryuk would never know, but they seemed to believe her. "Hey, lady. You're not gonna write a violation for the Life Script being missing, are you?"

Keegan opened the Life Script before looking over at the altar. "Oh…that. Yeah, well…it's not in the code of conduct book, so I'll have to look into it. I mean, losing an ancient valuable artifact SHOULD be a violation-"

"Is that why you're here? Because of the Life Script?"

Keegan frowned. "No…" She said sarcastically. "I'm just here because your fuse box blew. YES I'M HERE BECAUSE OF THAT!" She snarled.

"Man…whoever took that thing is gonna get us all in big trouble and we'll have to go through the 9 levels of punishment to figure out who did it…" They were grumbling before Ryuk nudged her.

"_Let's go…"_ He hissed through gritted teeth.

"Very well, I have to get on with the rest of my work. So, get out of my way before I write up more violations for 'disturbance of a Spirit Court member's work'." She pointed a pencil at them with a scowl.

As she and Ryuk turned away, he hissed at them. "Thanks a lot guys. We're screwed for sure now."

"Hey…wait a minute…" The shinigami with the scythe said suspiciously, inhaling.

"That smell…it smells like…human."

Keegan and Ryuk froze and she clutched the Life Script tighter in her hands. _'Fudge!'_

"Whatever you do, don't let go of the Script." Ryuk warned through gritted teeth.

"You do surveys in the Human Realm too? You reek of it!" Whew, false alarm.

Keegan sighed in relief. "Yeah, it's kind of hard to do. Though, the surveys there are strictly observation. Sorry, violation codes apply here not there." She apologized before turning back to Ryuk.

"You get me the hell out of here, right now."

"Right, didn't think you'd want to stay after such a close call."

--

Near continued to listen to the argument over and over again between Kuro and Kira until Kuro abruptly stopped the message after Kira seemed to be getting too aggravated for continuation of the conversation. "She's good, she's testing his patience to the limit."

"If Mr. Aizawa's suspicions are the same as ours, we have a substantial amount of evidence against who is Kira." Gevanni pointed out. "That and the fact Mr. Mikami went to the bank today…twice."

Near perked up. "Ah. Yes. That. He went to take out money and then went back a second time…unusual behavior." He hummed to himself. The Kuro-Cat chess piece had a little button built into the back of it now. When Near picked it up, he pressed it and it started meowing. "Miss Kuro's getting closer and closer to helping us catch Kira…and I think she knows just who Kira is."

His gaze fell upon the Kuro-cat chess piece before he turned the button off on it and placed it on the chessboard, moving it closer to the Kira piece, which now had a little mouse shaped hat atop its head.

"The game of cat versus rat is almost up. Kuro's going to pounce on Kira this time, but when Kuro catches the rat…she won't play with it anymore."

--

The return back to the Human World wasn't any better. Just as quickly as they had gone and come back Keegan bolted for the hallway bathroom to throw up again. Ryuk winced, sitting back on the couch in his 'Roy' persona once again before he heard the toilet flush and the water running in the sink. Keegan returned and threw the Life Script down on the coffee table in front of them.

"Okay…so…that was…interesting." She said awkwardly.

"Keegan…" Ryuk sighed. "DON'T EVER DO THAT AGAIN!" He snapped, standing to his feet, making Keegan feel short again when he stood in front of her. "You could have gotten yourself killed at any second. Do you know what could have happened to you if they found out you're the one taking away their added on life spans?"

She drew back and looked down at the floor. "…I didn't know that's what the Life Script did. See?" She pulled it up and showed the glowing of Rule # 17. "…It just came up while we were in there. I had no idea."

"Yeah, well neither did I." Ryuk snapped, snatching the notebook from her. "They could have put YOU through the 9 Levels of Punishment instead of me for that. Do you know what could have happened to you-"

"I'm sorry I made you take me to the Shinigami Realm, all right?!" She yelled at him suddenly. "I just…I wanted to know more about you." She trailed off, looking down at the floor again. There was silence and she felt her cheeks get hot. "I'm sorry, okay? I made a stupid decision and could have gotten us both into danger."

"Keegan…you have no idea." Ryuk growled at her. "Once they find out it was all a lie. I think we're gonna be on more than just the chopping block."

"Well it's their fault! They left the Life Script lying around! It's not our fault that we took it! It's their fault because they didn't protect it well enough."

'_Did she just say…'we'?_" Ryuk thought as he watched Keegan get angry over the whole ordeal.

"You did nothing wrong, Ryuk. I made you take me there. So if anyone should be punished it should be me. Not you!"

There was silence again. "…Why you Keegan? Why not me?" He asked, feeling sort of guilty.

"…Because I was the one to use it, not you."

He looked at her; Keegan looked angry and sad at the same time. Her arms crossed in front of her and she stood there as if trying to defy the gods themselves. What was that word humans used when they described nice things?

For a moment she looked…breathtaking with that defiant scowl on her pretty face. He looked down at the floor then back up at her. "You can't put the weight of the world on your shoulders just for me Keegan. I stole it."

"Well, if I don't protect you, who will?" Keegan cried. "WHO?!" It became apparent then that she seemed distraught over the thought of something horrible happening to Ryuk should he have to be 'punished'. What kind of horrible punishment did they put shinigamis through anyways? She all ready knew that shinigamis could die at some point, but never how they died in general.

She felt the hot tears coming again. It didn't matter how hard she tried, Keegan started crying again. If there was one thing Ryuk hated more than Joe or Light, it was Keegan crying. It made him feel guilty when he watched her get upset. Maybe he felt that way because it had something to do with the fact that he had feelings for Keegan, or maybe because when she got upset it sparked some kind of need to protect her in a sense, or perhaps it was just because…

He dropped the Life Script on the table and pulled her into a hug. "Don't cry…"

It wouldn't help to say that much, but he didn't know what else to say. "Don't let them take you away, Ryuk!" She sobbed. "I don't want to lose anyone else…"

'_Oh…if somebody shot me right now, I don't think I'd feel it.' _He thought with some form of regret. "Hey, if you keep crying you might flood the house."

Her grip tightened around his neck and Ryuk felt the wrath of how tight human hugs could be. "Erk. Keegan…you're crushing me."

She was shivering in his grasp before she leaned up to whisper in his ear. "…_I love you_."

Oh…why did she have to go and say those words? Those damn words that she just said. There was just that tiny hidden plea in there that he couldn't ignore. _'I could kick myself every time you get all needy, Keegan.' _He wished somebody would shoot him to make sure that this was just a hallucination or that Keegan had just garbled her words through her tears but the words went through his head again and Ryuk heard a guttural grumble in his head. Wait…there was a window that just opened (though not in the literal sense).

"Hey…does this mean that I can kiss you now?" He asked, though he was only joking.

His response was completely unexpected because that's what it was. She pulled away and suddenly did the unexpected. His chuckle was muffled and he found himself in the same awkward position he had Keegan in the night before. Lips locked and face in obvious shock. He felt his brain freeze over.

When Ryuk pulled her away from him, he found her cheeks were still wet with tears. His hand lifted up to wipe some of them away. "I was kidding." He said, breathlessly, a little surprised at her response. "What was that for?"

She sniffled while rubbing her face on her sleeves before she looked at him in silence before she gave him a peck on the cheek.

"It's a step forward."

--

Authoress Note: There's more flame for your crack pipes folks. Enjoy. Haha. I decided to try this type of idea where, 'what would it be like if a human saw the shinigami realm?' kind of thing, I think it turned out rather well, but then again we'll have to see if Ryuk and Keegan get in trouble for what they did when they got to the shinigami realm. Stay Tuned for chapter 23.


	23. Night Drive

Authoress Note: 100. 100. We're at a magical number here folks, a MAGIC number. You know what that means? We're at the 100-point mark! AAAAAAH! (nod nod) Yush, yush. This is very good. All right! So you guys liked the last chapter. Well, I have some news for you, I've recently posted a fan-art of the Life Script notebook on my deviantart account. So if you'd like to check it out, my username is the same there as it is here. So feel free to go poke around at it. I like its design but I hate that some of the words got cut off at the bottom of it. I just want to give you guys a great big hand for bringing the story to 100 reviews, I'm really grateful to everyone because I didn't think my story would go off great and you, the reviewers, have shown that yes, yes, it is a great story. So thank you so much for your care and support of the story.

Also, on another note. This next chapter's kind of going to focus on Ryuk and Keegan's relationship. Meaning: Date Numbah Two. xD So just a forewarning before everyone thinks that there's going to be any major action, maybe not a whole lot but just a little bit. Heehee.

Reviewer Acknowledgements: Line up please, line up!

CONGRATS GUYS! WE MADE IT TO REVIEW #100!

Mageofice88: Crongrats to our 100th review! YAY! Let's give 'em a big hand on this! WHOO! Thanks so much on the 100th review!

Syrupdrip: YAY! You're back, again! I missed you; usually it's yours and Sahxyel's reviews that tend to be the longest so I was wondering where my other best critiquer was. I thought you got lost…in the Shinigami Realm. Haha. I think everyone loved Keegan and Ryuk's misadventures in the Shinigami Realm. Ooh! Early Saturday Morning new cartoon show! Lol. I've noticed that I made Ryuk a little too…_feeling_ of emotions in his human form. I'm gonna fix that up a little bit in this chapter, just because I didn't sense his usual behavior. Also, they were cooped up in the house and he wasn't riding his stolen Nightrod. Haha. Don't worry, we're getting closer to having Light come to America soon because that way Kuro and the SPK can get him at the same time. So don't worry. I'm working towards that. So yes! It is exciting with the many possibilities. Thanks!

KakaIru-luver: I browsed through your works, they're pretty good. You're better at drawing people than I am. I just do chibis and comic characters. Oh! The Life script fan art of the notebook is up on my Deviantart account, you should check it out if you want to. Aw, don't worry. You can do it, I have faith. Thank you for dedicating a time for a fan art to the story. I'm giving you 5 gold stars because this is the first fan art of the story that someone is willing to make. Yay! Thanks.

PiScEs-BlOsSoM69: I think everyone dislikes Takada, mainly because she killed Mello and just…look at her face. If anything she should be the one dressing like Misa as the skanky whore. Sorry, had to get that out there, just because. Aw, don't say Ryuk 'got some'. That would imply they had smexors. Which…I don't know if it can happen. (shifty eyes) I have to concur with the other reviewers on that one. Still thinking about it.

Thanks though.

Sahxyel: I'm still trying to decide what Mikami's going to do in this situation. I'm sure I'll feature him having his doubts soon but at the same time he might still think that this is all a sick joke and think that Kuro bringing those people back to life could be is God is testing him. Of course…I'm still thinking of what to do yet. Not ready on that part. I'm glad you liked the trip they took the Shinigami Realm. I wasn't sure how I was going to get them there at first then I decided to be vague about it because I imagine Keegan floating in the air by herself would scare people. So…I did a transition instead to make it faster. I'm not sure ALL shinigamis are stupid, but I'm sure they don't have a lot of common sense. I mean, Ryuk's pretty damn smart but I see your point in that. Muahaha. Thanks.

tHePuNkPriiNceZs: Ah, well. She loves him, how can she not be worried about what happens to him? It was probably the most well thought up lie Keegan had ever concocted I believe. She's got a great imagination. xD Thanks.

Jillian Jiggs: o.o I hope that entire story crack didn't give you an overdose if it exploded everywhere. Good god woman, calm yourself. (gives a chill pill) You? Going to the shinigami realm? Well…that depends, are you going there on a field trip or to find a shinigami to drag back to earth and be your lover? Oohh…possibilities. Haha, I know right? For the carpet? Damn. He's lucky he still has the steam cleaner or it wouldn't come out. The significance of the Death Notes bleeding the ink profusely is to symbolize painful rejection of the names in the book because of the Life Script. The ink used to write the names down is like both vomit and blood from the Death Note at the same time because after chucking cookies so much you'd start throwing up blood too I imagine. Poor Misa, I'd crap bricks if my book started spouting 'blood' ink.

Enjoy Chapter 23 guys!

--

Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata.

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps) and others, belong to me. Thanks._

_--_

It was around 2:00 a.m and Ryuk lay wide-awake on the couch playing a video game at this ungodly hour of the evening. Keegan had long since gone to sleep. Of course…her choice of where to sleep was a bit uncomfortable. She was practically on the edge of the couch, curled up against him while Ryuk was tapping the buttons on the controller as he played Soul Calibur 3. Their trip to the Shingami Realm had troubled him a lot and he didn't really like thinking about it. Especially after the fact when they returned, Keegan broke down and told him she loved him after their argument. It became clear to Ryuk that he was thoroughly confused. Love? What was love to him?

He didn't understand its concept except when it involved apples. Love? With Keegan? Well…this was certainly different. No, this was certainly a sign that something was wrong with him. What was he doing here? What exactly was he doing in an actual 'relationship' with a human? Did that imply that he loved her too? Was that even possible? Was he even capable of loving?

Keegan made a muffled noise in her sleep and snuggled closer to Ryuk for warmth, which wouldn't be received since this human form was just a façade, it wasn't anything else. Shinigamis were naturally cold creatures so why…did Keegan feel so warm?

He paused the game and looked down at her in her sleep. "…Sometimes I wonder if you're crazy…" Ryuk mumbled, lifting his hand up to rest atop her head. "How you managed to get me to this point I'll never know. You've got it all Keegan. You've got the whole world in your hands because of that notebook, you've got Light on his toes and you're driving him up a goddamn wall, and to top it all off you're a mad genius who doesn't even realize it."

She didn't answer him, but that was the way he preferred it. She wasn't running her mouth at him in annoyance or agitation or even crying. Sometimes he liked it when she was asleep. Keegan seemed so at peace with the world around her and he even wondered if she really was asleep sometimes.

At that moment he had an idea in his head and got up off the couch to see to it this task was carried out.

--

The wind was brisk on his face while the engine revved on the motorcycle. Ryuk was cutting through dark alleyways and cutting late night drivers off on the roads with his bike while Keegan sat in front still nestled into a sort of sleeping position against his chest all bundled up in the warmth of the Harley Davidson jacket. She was rudely awakened by the sound of a car honking its horn at Ryuk after he cut off another vehicle, looking around rapidly while she saw the scenery blurring by. "RYUK!" She snarled, obviously displeased at this horrible prank he had probably pulled.

By the time Keegan's brain had registered that they were out on the open road…at some ungodly hour in the morning, Ryuk had stopped the bike just in time at a red light. He seemed to be grinning from ear to ear, his brows raising mischievously. "Hey there sleepy head."

"What the hell are we doing out at 2 o'clock in the frickin' morning?!" She snapped. "Are you crazy? My aunt's gonna think you kidnapped me!"

"Relax. I'm just taking a drive. It's no big deal." Ryuk assured, grin still there.

"Ryuk you take me home right now or I'm gonna-"

He cut her off and pointed at the light. "Can't talk now, I'm driving. I can't have any distractions. So shut up and sit back." He pulled her back into the comfort of his chest and listened to her grumble.

"My aunt's gonna kill us." She sighed. "Where are we going, now?"

"I don't know. I just felt like driving." Ryuk said, the engine on the motorcycle revved and they must have cut through a few more alleyways because Keegan recognized this part of the neighborhood as being on the other side of town. "Seriously, where are we going?" She asked.

"I don't know. I told you." Ryuk answered.

"Okay…Are we there yet?" She decided to play an all too familiar game of 'are we there yet?'

"Keegan, don't start. I told you-"

"Well we gotta stop at some point!" She exclaimed. "It's the middle of the night."

"Why should we?" Ryuk grinned.

"Because I have to pee." Keegan confessed, then again she was lying.

Oh no. Seriously? Right now? She just ruined this fun trip and now he would have to make a pit stop. "Ugh…Hang on." He sighed; they drove for another two minutes before he pulled the motorbike up to some late night coffee shop and let her get off. She handed him his jacket back when she got off the bike. "I'll be quick, I promise."

"Do you seriously have to go or did you just use that as an excuse?" Ryuk asked with a growl. "Keegan, you ruined the moment."

"Don't you usually do that anyways?" Her brow cocked with a smirk before she entered the coffee shop. "You're lucky I have my wallet on me. I'll get you an apple cider."

"Hey-" The door closed before he could protest against her doing so and Ryuk was left sitting alone on his bike. "Why'd she have to go and do that?" He sighed. _'She's starting to get to me even more now. Damn it, why'd she have to go and tell me she loved me?'_

--

There were a few late night stragglers when Keegan had walked into the coffee shop, pulling out her wallet from the pocket of her sweatpants and walking up to the counter. They had several different types of apple cider, but Keegan found a new taste that she thought Ryuk might like. "I'll take the Apple Chai tea. Small." She ordered, paid, and stopped short to look out at Ryuk on his bike.

He seemed to be staring in contemplation and Keegan even wondered now if that was the right thing to say to him: that she loved him. Was it love? Well…it kind of felt like it. He made her angry, he did little things that annoyed her, and she cared a lot about him. Yeah, that sounded about right. Maybe she'd bothered Ryuk about that when she said it. The thought of losing someone else close to her seemed unbearable and Keegan didn't want to think about Ryuk dying.

"Miss Phelps…" Someone called behind her. Keegan turned to look at some businesswoman drinking a hot cup off coffee and working on something on a laptop. Keegan recognized her as Miss Lidner, the blonde lady that was with that SPK group Ryuk had told her about.

"Oh! Hi, I'm sorry. I didn't see you there, how are you?" Keegan asked politely, not that it mattered. She was just trying to be courteous.

Halle Lidner closed her laptop and shrugged. "I've been better, Miss Phelps. Any more trouble with the ex-boyfriend?"

Keegan frowned at that subject. "I don't talk about him anymore, ma'am. He's out of my life for good…I'm starting fresh." She looked out at Ryuk again on the motorcycle and smiled.

"Oh?" Miss Lidner asked, looking over at Ryuk as well. "Is that your new boyfriend?"

'_She called him my boyfriend…aw.'_ Keegan thought to herself. "Yeah, he's a sweet guy. Little rough around the edges but, I'm working him out. He's not like my ex…he's…so different."

Miss Lidner looked at Ryuk suspiciously. "And he took you out at 2 in the morning…because…?"

"He's a goofball." Keegan giggled. "I was sleeping and he woke me up and took me here. I got him to stop because I said I had to use the bathroom."

"In actuality you lied." Miss Lidner chuckled.

"He knows, I just wanted to stop in here and get him something. He loves apples and apple flavored stuff." Keegan held up the apple chai tea. "I think he'll like this. I hear it's good."

"What's his name?" Miss Lidner asked, still looking at Ryuk funny.

"Ryuk." She said without realizing it. "Oh! I mean, Roy. I said Ryuk because he did this stupid thing where he tried to translate his American name into Japanese and it came out as Ryuk." Keegan laughed. "I called him that for weeks before he got sick of it."

"When did you meet him?"

Keegan stared at the floor with a small smile. "Months ago. This was before my ex-boyfriend came and tried to attack me and kill my friend."

"So…you've been seeing him longer than that?"

Keegan shrugged. "Who knows…maybe I've known him my whole life." Keegan said with admiration of him. "Well, I've got to get going. It was nice seeing you again. Thanks for checking up on me." _'Not.' _Keegan thought as she exited the building.

There he was, there was her so-called boyfriend, sitting astride on his stolen motorcycle with his jacket draped over his arms. Keegan held the drink out to him. "Here, it's an apple tea. It's really good. I had a sip." She showed mild concern while he sat out here in the chilly night air without his jacket on. "Aren't you cold?"

"I'm a shinigami, I don't feel temperatures very often." Ryuk assured. "Besides, I'm waiting for you to put it back on so we can start driving again."

"Ryuk…is something bothering you? I mean, normal people don't go out at 2 in the morning for a drive." Keegan said before she slapped her hand to her forehead. "Wait, what am I saying? You and I aren't normal people."

"Exactly." He said, taking a drink from the cup of tea. "Hey, not bad. Its apple flavored you said?"

"Apple Chai tea. I think you'd like it better if it was cold." Keegan chuckled. "You like it when stuff is cold don't you?"

"Not recently." Ryuk shrugged. "I mean, it's a little strange but, I know I can handle just about anything you throw at me." He laughed.

She couldn't help but smile at him when he confidently proclaimed that he could handle 'anything'. "Anything?"

"Yeah." He assured, drinking more of the apple tea. "So, where do you wanna go?"

"I don't know. I was looking up where big apple orchards were on the computer yesterday. I found some but now that I found them I don't know that I want to let you go." She sighed sadly. "I'll miss you too much if I do."

"Who says I still wanna go?" Ryuk snorted, "You're crazy if you think I'm leaving you by yourself so Joe can come after you again."

"You've really hated him right from the start haven't you?"

"You got me, I want to kill him with a Death Note. But I can't. You'd lose me if I did." He informed.

"What?" She said incredulously.

"The Death Note would kill me if I killed Joe. But if I saved you with the Life Script, you and I would both be safe. No harm done." He explained. "That's how both notebooks work."

Keegan frowned. "Well, that's stupid. If you guys have Death Notes how do you protect the people you care about?"

"Exactly. It's rare when shinigamis fall in love." He said, not really looking at Keegan when he said this. She could only guess he was just a little unsure still about when she told him she loved him.

"…Ryuk-"

"Yeah?" He lifted his head up to look at her.

"You don't think I'm stupid for…you know…" She awkwardly shifted her foot at the ground with her lips pursed.

Aw. Now she probably felt bad for making HIM feel awkward. Why couldn't he have just avoided the drama of this and just say it was fine? Why did he have to be an ass and not say anything? "No." Ryuk answered, tossing his cup in the trash. "You're an abnormal human Keegan. Even if you never touched the Life Script…you still would have known I was there that night."

She smiled at his remark towards the night they first met and laughed softly. "Yeah, I probably would have too. My dad always used to say I was special."

"Pfft. No kiddin'." Ryuk laughed. "It's like you were born that way or something."

She shrugged. "I've always been the weird one, in class, in high school, in life…" She sighed. "My aunt thinks I'm strange to some degree but she loves and understands me. Say…why did you ever come to the human world in the first place Ryuk?"

He grinned. "Truth?"

"Yeah." Keegan said.

"I was bored." He laughed. "That's all there was to it. I was bored. Nothing else." He got back on the bike and tossed the jacket at her. "You comin' or what?"

She held the leather in her hands before she threw it on and hopped on the vehicle in front of him. "Yeah, sure. So, where exactly are we going? I have to sleep at some point."

"I don't." Ryuk snorted. "We've got all night." He revved up the engine. "So, you know the town pretty well. Where to?"

"Uh…not this side of town exactly. Like I said, we were in Cincinatti and got lost in the ghetto?" Keegan reminded.

"Oh yeah…good point. We should…"

"Go home then. We can watch a funny move. Non-80s related."

"Finally, some decent film we can watch without having comment on the bad graphics and fake blood." The bike took off into the night and he spun the bike around in a circle to turn it back in the other direction. Of course, for Keegan's taste Ryuk might have been a tad over the speed limit.

"WAH SLOW DOWN!"

--

Miss Lidner watched from afar afterwards while the two conversed, of course she couldn't hear what they were saying, but it seemed to be a rather tender sort of thing before they drove off. She picked up her cell phone while getting into the unmarked car in the area and closed the door when she was inside. Gevanni was driving while Near was in the back.

"So, Miss Phelps talked to you?" Near asked, curling his finger through that one lock of hair by his ear constantly.

"Yes, she seems to be doing well. Not really anything suspicious about her activity here but she did get a new boyfriend."

Near perked up. "Boyfriend? Did her former boyfriend go to prison?"

"Yes, but she's seeing someone else. Drives a Nightrod VRSC. I imagine he's probably very well off with how he handles it."

"We never saw him at her house though when we were there." Near said, curious of how this came to be. "Did she tell you anything about him? Does she even know about the charges against her former boyfriend not going through?"

Miss Lidner nodded. "Yes, she seems happy with him. But then again what boyfriend in their right mind takes their girlfriend out to a coffee shop at 2 in the morning?" She shook her head with a laugh. "The man's kind of pale, and he's definitely got a thing for Harley Davidson wear. He was letting her wear his jacket when the took off on the bike." She had to stop though when the last question sank in though. "WHAT?!"

"Did they say where they were going?"

"I briefly heard back to her house."

"I believe we'll be giving Miss Phelps a call sometime very soon. We need another interview and to warn her. A new case came up and Mr. Aizawa sent another email as of last night. Mr. Yagami arrived at work yesterday furious over something but he didn't want to talk about it."

"We'll have to see about Mr. Aizawa's email though." Gevanni called from the driver's seat. "I have a feeling we'll be having an unexpected message from the Task Force some time this evening."

"Yes, I'd expect that. Kuro's not been doing much lately at this time and she's all ready gotten Kira into an unexpected frenzy." Near mumbled. "I wonder what she'll do next?"

--

It had been a while since solid apples had been in his mouth, and Ryuk wondered why he was even letting himself try these new apple dishes Keegan started making for him from day one. He supposed it was all right but the old original juicy red apple did the trick just fine. They'd stopped at a gas station with a 24-hour convenience store because Keegan had warned him that he was getting low on gas.

"You're lucky they even had apples inside."

There wasn't a soul around, so it was safe for Ryuk to eat his apples in shinigami form. "Yeah, what's it to you?" He spewed apple crumbs at her and Keegan flicked them off her. She had to give his jacket back while he was in shinigami form. "Can you not chew with your mouth open?"

"What's it to you Keegan? They're my apples." He chomped noisily.

"Which I bought for you." Keegan reminded, tapping her foot against the pavement. "You know it's about 3 a.m now. There's not much we can do on the way home. So what do we do?"

"We do just about everything I want to do usually Keegan, we've never actually ventured out on the town except that one day on my bike. So I think it's your turn to decide."

"Well, I want ice cream." Keegan said right away. "Have you ever had ice cream before Ryuk?"

Ryuk shrugged. "Not really. You know better than that. I like apples."

"You might like apple sorbet then if not ice cream." Keegan suggested instead. "Hey, Caufile's Bakery's open really late because little old Mr. Caufile's a night owl and the place does good business. Owned it for over 50 some years now. It's closer to my house and we could go there."

"You know, the human world's pretty boring to me Keegan, how do you manage to live here?" He asked, watching Keegan pump the last drops of gas into his motorcycle.

"I don't know Ryuk, how do you live in the shinigami realm?" She laughed. "It's a wasteland."

"No really? Remind me four or five more times all ready." He growled before he finished off the last apple core.

At that moment, Keegan's cell phone began ringing and Keegan flipped it open to answer it. "Hello?"

"_Miss Phelps, good to see you're still awake. Bit late for you to be out at this time wouldn't you say?_" Near asked.

Keegan frowned. "Oh. Hi. It's you guys again. Look, I'm kind of in the middle of something with my boyfriend. I'm guessing Miss Lidner all ready told you about that though." She rolled her eyes. "What do you want?" She asked boredly.

"_I just need a question answered Miss Phelps…" _Near informed.

Keegan looked over at Ryuk and gestured for him to listen. "Yeah?"

"_Are you aware that your former boyfriend was able to get off on the charges thrown against him?"_

Keegan nearly dropped her phone and scrambled to pick it up. "WHAT?!"

Ryuk snarled in fury. "That does it…" He growled. "That fucking does it!"

"_I suggest you get home Miss Phelps. You're the first person he'd come looking for I assume." _Near advised wisely.

Before she could say anything else Agent N hung up and Keegan scowled at the phone before she slapped it shut and shoved it in her pocket. "Damn it!"

"We've got to go, NOW." Ryuk hissed, grabbing her by the arm and making sure she was seated on the bike properly before hopping on it. Back as "Roy" again, he'd have to have a few words with Joe this time. It didn't matter if he'd get punished for protecting Keegan, this was the last straw. He grit his teeth before he zoomed off into the night.

Keegan wasn't too impressed by the amount of speed they were going, before it finally registered in her brain: "Wait. YOU DON'T EVEN HAVE A LISCENCE!"

Of course, Ryuk only grinned deviously and laughed. "I know! Isn't it great!"

"You idiot!"

--

While they were driving Keegan had opened her cell phone to dial 911. "Hi, ah. Yes, this might be a non-emergency but at the same time it could possibly turn into an emergency, I recently recall my ex-boyfriend was released from prison his name is Joseph Kindler. He was recently involved in that hit-and-run murder attempt of my friend Tito "TJ" Juarez. I need a few police officers at my house. If you don't mind. I was just informed he was released today and I think he may try something again. If you could send some help that would be great. Otherwise, yeah."

She hung up after the dispatcher agreed to her request. "They're sending a squad car." She informed.

"Call 'em back. They'll need an ambulance and a coroner while they're at it." Ryuk warned, he skidded the bike to a halt at a stoplight.

"I have to call TJ to warn him." She pressed a speed dial button and listened to it ring before he picked up. "TJ. Lock every door and window in your house. Joe got out early apparently."

She heard angry screaming and rapid Spanish in the background before she could hear movement on the phone. TJ sounded like he was going through his whole house screaming: 'Cholo comin' to shoot me this time!' Keegan winced at the sounds he was making and was met with his father on the phone. Keegan had to tell him about Joe getting out of the charges pressed against him somehow and that his family better be careful because Joe could come to their house or hers.

Ryuk was hearing TJ vaguely screaming in the background about going to Keegan's house with a shotgun and several distant family members who were gangsters and something about a drive by against Joe. Keegan told TJ to shut up though and she hung up. "Does he ever stop talking?"

They skidded the bike to a halt in front of her house where sure enough Joe was pounding on the front door. Ryuk revved the engine loudly for several moments before Joe turned around on Keegan's doorstep and saw them together on the bike. "Keegan, if he moves, I can technically run him over with this bike. You know what's funny?"

"That you'd go to jail and disappear and everyone wouldn't be able to find you?" She said with worry as Joe came closer.

"No, because this isn't me technically killing a human with my bare hands." Ryuk grinned darkly.

"Keegan!" Joe shouted. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Running you down." Ryuk answered for her. "What does it look like?"

"Who the hell are you supposed to be pal?"

Ryuk's grin went away and his persona as Roy suddenly disappeared. So Joe could see Ryuk's shinigami self now. "Remember me?"

Whatever Joe had in his hands he'd dropped it and in the dark Keegan though she saw a black spot grow larger in the center of Joe's pants. "Oh my God…he pissed himself." Keegan whispered.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU?! Wh-What are you some demon that hovers around trying to keep me away? Are you tryin' to possess Keegan or something?"

"I told you, I was a premonition…of your Death, remember? You're messing with the balance of life and death in this case. It's my job to get rid of you." Ryuk growled, his eyes getting a red tint to them. "Come on Joe. Why don't you tell me what you came here to really do?" He ordered. "If you don't I'll kill you slowly." Ryuk gnashed his jagged teeth in anger.

"Joe, if you don't get out of here you'll regret it more than you'll regret getting expelled from University for this behavior." Keegan warned.

"You've been cheating on me!" Joe snapped. "What am I supposed to do? Let you go around without me in your life?"

"WE BROKE UP! Does that not register in your brain?! How does that count as 'cheating' if we broke up? I'm not your girlfriend anymore!" Keegan yelled at him. "Why won't you leave me alone?" She asked.

"Because if I can't have you then you shouldn't have anyone." Joe said, his eyes dark and his voice threatening. "Now get off that bike away from that monster and come here!"

Ryuk revved the engine menacingly and snarled. "You better reword what you just said or I'll run you down right here without any questions for you to ask. You die slowly and I get to watch. Technically I'm not touching you, so I don't get in trouble anyways."

"Keegan, you realize that you're helping a monster murder me?" Joe pointed out, his hand going to his chest to make it seem like he was morally hurt. "What's the matter with you? Are you crazy?"

Keegan had to let it sink in for several moments. The way he said it sounded kind of insulting and she didn't like being told she was crazy. Crazy? Because she cared about Ryuk? Because she had feelings for him nobody else had? Keegan grit her teeth and she scowled at Joe. "I always thought there was a bigger reason I broke up with you for, and now I know why." She told him.

"Because you were wrong and stupid?" Joe asked.

Ryuk inched the bike forward several times with a snarl. "You better take those words back…"

"No, because I'm not the one whose crazy Joe. You are. Crazy people try to kill their ex-girlfriend's best friend, crazy people stalk their ex-girlfriends, and crazy people try anything possible to get the charges against them dropped so they can come back to their ex-girlfriend's house and kill her or take her hostage." Keegan informed. "I've never been crazy in my life Joe. And now that you've told me I am. I don't think we ever really had anything."

"YOU STUPID BITCH!"

"That does it!" Ryuk snarled, the engine on the bike rumbled and he drove up on the sidewalk in front of Joe and beeped the horn at him with a snarl. "GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE BEFORE I MAUL YOU WITH THIS BIKE!" He roared.

Joe stumbled back on his ass while Ryuk positioned the wheel at his crotch. Keegan sitting in the front seat with her brow cocked in a suggestive manner. "Careful. He'll do it too if you don't."

There wasn't much that Joe could do at this point, Ryuk had spared his life twice, but this was cutting it close. He didn't want to let Joe live, but Keegan probably wouldn't want to be looked at as a suspect in a case like this. He didn't want to see Keegan get into trouble for this and he definitely didn't want her going to prison if the authorities thought she was involved in this. How would she stop Light then?

Keegan saw another dark spot on Joe's pants again while he lay there on the ground trembling. Ryuk staring him down with a death glare while Keegan sat there calmly. "If TJ were here right now he'd make sure to shoot you without hesitation."

"I let you live twice, pal. You better heed my advice and get the hell out of here." Ryuk warned once more. "Leave, or I'll kill you this time in front of all these people coming down here, with not an ounce of mercy."

She could hear the sirens now and she elbowed Ryuk to change back into his human form before things looked ugly and the cops thought Keegan was holding him down with this motorcycle.

Joe watched in disbelief as the horrible monster disappeared and was replaced by this rough looking guy revving the engine of his Nightrod at him. "You…you…what-how? Whaaaa?"

When the cops pulled up Keegan turned the engine off the motorcycle and watched as Joe was pulled into police custody, slammed against the hood of the police car, and put in handcuffs. "Jeez, somebody get this guy a pair of pants. He must have pissed himself when the girl and her boyfriend here must have threatened to run him over." One of the cops grumbled.

Moments later TJ had just arrived in his mother's Escalade and gotten out of it. As soon as he saw Joe getting into the police car, he started cursing at him in angry Spanish and pointed at him and made a cutting motion across his throat. "YEAH, YOU!" He pointed at Joe angrily. "You try to get out again, I'm comin' for your ass! I'm comin' for it!" TJ snarled.

Joe of course couldn't believe what he was seeing when he saw that TJ didn't have a scratch on him from hitting him with his car. The Uruguayan youth was shouting in angry Spanish before an officer reprimanded him for his behavior, so he was quiet afterwards. TJ didn't get to question Keegan for anything because his parents drove up afterwards, his mother getting out of the car and yelling at him in Spanish to come home and his father pointing at the car shaking his head.

Keegan and Ryuk were left alone though. The cops told Keegan she didn't need a statement because Joe somehow had someone post bail for him and that was how he got out.

Keegan went inside and slammed the front door behind her, with Ryuk following behind her now invisible to everyone but her once back in his shinigami form. "…Think we should have run him over?" Keegan asked.

Her answer was Ryuk's fist slamming into the bathroom door in the front hallway. "I could have killed him right then and there Keegan…I would have done it too if you'd asked me to."

"Even if you wanted to Ryuk…why didn't you?" She asked, back to him staring at the magnets on the fridge some few feet away. "…Why?"

"Who would stop Light then?" Ryuk hissed. "Certainly not you. And getting you out of prison wouldn't be a clean job Keegan. Then you'd be a suspect on the run…"

"Good point." She said once she thought about it. "Hey…thanks. For the ride tonight. I think it helped me clear my head some."

He was hunched over in the kitchen now, Keegan smiling at the back of his head. "I know what you want Ryuk." She called over to him.

"So…I can just get it myself now?" Ryuk looked at her over his shoulder, she had her hands on her hips with a fond smirk. "Yeah, go ahead."

The fridge door flew open and several apples flew onto the table to which he gathered an armful of them and took them towards the living room.

"Come on, I've got some work to do. I'm going to tie up some loose ends."

--

Everyone had gone out for a late lunch, everyone was tired, everyone was sleeping late and at the office, Light and the SPK were working to the bone and cracking down closer and closer to the Kira case…Kuro had yet to message the Task Force until now. When he had returned from grabbing a quick lunch, Aizawa heard an alert noise on the laptop.

At 4:18 in Japan, Aizawa flipped open the Task Force computer to find a blinking black background with the backwards-white K on it. "Huh?"

"_Task Force, Mr. Kira…" _Kuro said.

Aizawa stared at the screen and looked around suspiciously to see if Light would walk in at any moment.

"Oh…uh. No, It's just Aizawa right now. Everyone else isn't here…unless Kira's listening in. Can I help you with something?"

He was given silence for a few moments before Kuro answered. _"Are you alone?"_

Aizawa looked around cautiously again. "I think so."

"…_Go on. Have you something to say to me?"_

"You know L, I presume. Right?" Aizawa asked.

"_Agent L of the Task Force? Otherwise known as Mr. Yagami? Yes. I do. Why Mr. Aizawa?"_

"Because…I wonder…if you're starting to get to his head." Aizawa replied, unsure of what to think of it. "I've known Agent L since the Kira case first came around, him and his father. So, if you are a miracle worker and who you say you are…you are making the world right…Right?"

"…_I have no doubt Mr. Aizawa that you think…Agent L's suspicious behavior makes him a suspect as Kira?"_

Aizawa didn't want t admit it to this stranger he did not know by person but he had to. "…I do think it's him. I think it's been him all along."

"_Even if the evidence doesn't show it? He still behaves erratically, as though something is off. Mr. Aizawa if you have any doubts about this man…then I think you should follow what your conscience says. If you are brave enough and truthful enough to admit this me, someone you do not know, then you are a very trusting person. What made you so trusting of Agent L, Mr. Aizawa?"_

He sounded kind of angry with himself when he responded. "I don't know…the way he so passionately proclaimed he wasn't Kira to the first L. I'm always worried that if lung cancer won't get me…Kira will."

If Aizawa had any worry in his voice to hide, Kuro somehow sensed it. "_Mr. Aizawa…"_

He looked up at the computer screen with interest as his name was said with some form of moral concern. "Kuro?"

"_I will protect you._ _Should Kira strike at you…you will not fall. Do what needs to be done."_

--

Authoress Note: I didn't like writing this chapter as much. So I was hoping for the next chapter you guys could help me with. I'd be very grateful to you and I think that I need a little reviewer support as we get to the end of the story. I apologize if Ryuk's behavior seems a little bit more…out of character than normal but I guess the more time he spends around Keegan the more he feels than he usually would. So…if I have some questions pertaining to that pop up I'll be happy to answer but I thought I'd let everybody know anyways. I'm trying as hard as I can to keep his personality in check but the love-dovey side of me wants to escape and I might have to start biting my fingers if they don't get control of themselves. Hmmm..

Anyways guys read and review. Questions always welcomed.


	24. Kuro protects

Authoress Note: Wow! I hadn't expected Chapter 23 to go as well as I thought. Aww…thanks guys. That's awful nice of you. Great to know that even if I think a chapter isn't to my liking you guys still love it. I appreciate that; it gives me warm fuzzies inside. Also on a weird and rhetorical question: Do shinigamis get warm fuzzies inside? O.o

On another note, we're getting closer to the climax and how it's going to end. The end may have some intertwining with how the Death Note series ends in the anime, but that's all I'm going to say for now. I'm still working on it and I don't plan to give anymore away than that.

Also, if anyone gets the chance, I saw this really cool thing in the Director's Cut of the Death Note anime. Go to Youtube and type in 'Death Note Final Conclusion' if you've seen it, yay! If you haven't…go watch it now! It's kind of short and has English subtitles but I thought it was so cool.

Oh well. Time for reviewer acknowledgements:

KakaIru-luver: Aw, shuck. Don't rush anything. Take time to enjoy this next chapter first at least. ^^ Take a break. Thanks for your effort and 'fanart' support of Ryuk and Keegan. Haha.

Sahxyel: Well, for one thing even if Ryuk wants to kill Joe, he knows he shouldn't because it's for Keegan's sake to not look like a suspect and he knows that he'd technically have 'died' when she told him not to because she didn't want to lose anyone else previously. It was kind of hard to try and write the whole Joe incident the way it did. I mean, if anything I think Ryuk should have just run him over with the bike. At least then his 'actions' would be let slide because Ryuk could make up anything to defend himself in that case. I really would have paid serious money to see that scene in an anime. Haha, Ryuk running over someone with a bike. If he wouldn't kill Joe with the bike, I'd just want to see him hit him with it.

At least to the point where he would leave Keegan alone. I imagine we won't see Joe for a long time. He's not getting out of jail this time. I'm planning on having Ryuk tell Keegan the truth about how Light got the Death Note in the first place with repercussions to his actions, but of course knowing Keegan you'll know what to expect: locking him out of her room. Haha. I'm glad you liked Chapter 23, I thought it wouldn't go over as well as I thought it would but you proved me wrong. Yay! Thank you.

tHePuNkPriiNcEzs: I wanted to have Ryuk just hit him with the bike if I wrote a scene where Joe was walking across the street but I decided not to because I think I'll save it for later. Muhahaha. I also contemplated on having TJ come to the scene with said shotgun but I didn't because TJ's a lovable side character that you don't want to see go to prison because he's a minority and he gets into enough trouble as it is. Haha. Thanks.

PiScEs-BlOsSoM69: Yeah, I guess he's only out of character because it's fanfiction and the fact that he's got warm fuzzy feelings. Haha. Thanks.

--

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps) and others, belong to me. Thanks._

_--_

Christmas Eve always seemed like a slow day to Keegan in a sense, mainly because her parents had died two weeks before when she was little and it bothered her a bit. She usually wasn't fazed by death unless it involved Mr. Yagami messing up the balance in the world, and Keegan could only imagine what was going through Ryuk's mind as she did her last minute Christmas shopping for neighbors and family friends and Aunt Carol. They were in the shopping part of town where in the spring and summer it was just window shoppers, but on Christmas Eve it seemed like every damn person was running around at the last minute for that last gift.

She was all bundled up this time when they went out. A long black pea coat with jeans, the Chanel Boots that Aunt Carol gave to her last Christmas, a white cashmere scarf, and black beanie cap.

And Ryuk, well…his outfit never really changed with the whole "Roy" façade. When Aunt Carol found Keegan asleep on the couch and Ryuk playing video games this morning she asked him if he ever showered to which his response was: 'No, I clean my favorite outfit everyday though.' Keegan scolded him for that because he left her aunt confused to some extent before she decided they should get out of the house again.

Ryuk had never had a Christmas before, Keegan felt a little sorry for him because he was missing out on a lot of things and he didn't get any presents. Who knows how long he'd been around for anyways? They were window-shopping right now, and it was suddenly out of the blue when Ryuk, as "Roy", asked suddenly: "What the hell is Christmas anyways?"

Aw. Man. It figured. He had no idea what it was. "Ohh…" Keegan groaned. "You poor thing. You don't know about many holidays do you?" She said, putting an arm around him in a sort of half hug as they walked down the street. "It's a Catholic Holiday, one my parents celebrated frequently. It was my mom's favorite holiday you see. It's basically to signify the birth of Jesus, except the weird thing is he was born sometime in the spring, at least that's what I hear." Keegan frowned, twitching her nose. "Exactly why I'm agnostic you see. It's not just because of my mother, it's also because the Catholic religion is confusing enough as it is." She patted his back.

"What's up your sleeves today Keegan? You're being awful close today." Ryuk rolled his eyes. "You're creeping me out." He tried to shake her off.

She frowned, smacking him in the back of the head. "Hey, my parents died real close to Christmas, give me a break. It's not the best holiday for me you know." She reminded.

He rubbed the back of his head. "Oh…yeah. So…what's the present giving supposed to represent, then? What's that got to do with a baby being born?"

"…Think of it as this Ryuk, the gifts were a belated baby shower." Keegan explained in simpler terms.

"So we're basically getting gifts for other people because of a fricking baby shower?" He said with disbelief. "That's the stupidest holiday ever." He huffed. "Sheesh, you humans and your weird beliefs."

Keegan ignored Ryuk's comment and stopped in front of a small boutique store where they had several Rachel Ray cookbooks that her aunt had been wanting for the longest time. "I wish I could buy them all for her. She loves Rachel Ray and Guy Fieri." She sighed. "Hey. Stay here for a second, I'll be right back." She told him before going inside the store to purchase the gifts to get for her aunt.

--

This was stupid. What was he doing here with her shopping? Ryuk didn't even have money of his own to get a gift, let alone try and make something for Keegan. Ugh. Making a gift would have been disastrous; he doubted she would have liked a necklace made out of bones from the shinigami realm. Then again he could always steal something from that one shinigami who had a fascination for jewelry. "Nah, too risky. Wait, what's the matter with me?" She slapped himself. He couldn't be thinking of gift giving at this time, he had work to do. Like watching out for Joe, keeping Keegan's identity a secret, and laying low as a casual sort of 'boyfriend'. There was that word again: 'boyfriend'. He didn't like the word too much but…this was Keegan he was thinking about here. This was the same human that had bawled her eyes out to him to tell him that she loved him, the same human who supported his apple addiction, the same human who had no fear of him in any way shape or form when she basically was best friends with 'death' in a sense, and this was the same human that didn't want to see him get hurt or tortured or die.

What caused humans to care so deeply about things that should have been unimportant? If Ryuk could categorize himself among things that were "pointless" to care about he put on the list pets, shinigamis, people who were all ready dead, and love. Then again…

He lifted his 'human' hand up and covered his mouth with it. Recalling the night he'd so recklessly kissed Keegan and in return had her kiss him not even less than a week ago. It had felt…nice. He couldn't deny that he hadn't liked it and the fact that it could possibly happen again because of the relationship Keegan now shared with him. He was confused. "What the hell's wrong with me?" Ryuk wondered.

Across the street he caught sight of something unusually fascinating to him in a shop window. Whatever it was he liked it, well he thought Keegan would like it. He didn't know how he'd get it and he certainly wasn't going to shoplift it since Keegan had a problem with stealing as it was. So if he couldn't steal it as a person…

--

The shop was relatively empty when he passed through the window. He'd pick-pocketed some poor old geezer for two twenties without being seen in his shinigami form and was now in the shop hunched over staring at the object with clear intent on getting it. This said present was an antique of some sort judging by the sign out front reading: _Quillo's Blast from the Past_. It looked relatively new and he even wondered why humans uselessly threw stuff away only to have it resold to other humans.

The clerk at the front desk was a man probably in his late 50s flipping through a t.v guide for the next episode of 'The Unit' before he heard something jingling in front of him a found the little desk bell next to him suddenly ringing. His eyes widened at the sight and on a pad of paper next to him horrible handwriting scratched out: _'The one in the window. I'm wanna buy it.'_

Knowing full well he couldn't be seen, Ryuk determined that this man probably thought his shop was haunted. Without questioning he watched the terrified human stumble over towards the front window and start pointing at various objects until the pad of paper floated over to him and the handwriting appeared again. _'The one in the box, stupid. The one with the cat in the moon.'_

The man picked up a dusty jewelry box that held in it a silvery medallion with a curvy black cat curled around it as though it were circling the moon. "Th-This one?"

The pen that was writing on the pad poked at it in recognition and the two twenties were presented out of thin air. _'Nice doing business with you.'_ The lid on the box closed in the man's hand and he watched as the box disappeared with the ghost.

He ducked into an alleyway before he reverted back to "Roy" Again and stuffed the box in the inside pocket of his jacket. He quickly hurried back across the street just in time to lean against the window of the shop casually while Keegan came out with the cook books all wrapped together and she was smiling. "I'm sorry I took so long, the line was long and I went straight to a little old lady doing free gift wrapping because I have horrible wrapping skills." She chuckled.

"Took ya long enough." His lips twitched into a soft laugh.

"Okay, when we get home I've got to head to the grocery store real quick. It's for Christmas Dinner for my Aunt. I promised I'd do the food shopping this year for dinner this holiday."

"Will there be apple pie?" Ryuk leaned his head over her shoulder with a grin.

"There's always dessert at Christmas." Keegan rolled her eyes at his behavior and pushed him away. "Come on, we have to get home and put these presents under the tree."

--

Keegan was a little worried after she'd left Ryuk alone at the house. He just seemed so laid back and at ease after she had left him to his own devices. "Oh, God only knows what he's doing with Lucil." She mumbled, pushing the cart through the aisles and picking out a large bag of apples, a chicken to roast (because Keegan didn't feel like turkey this year), a couple potatoes for homemade mashed potatoes, cinnamon, green beans, and a number of other good things that Aunt Carol usually used to make homemade dishes for Christmas Dinner.

"Let's see…who's coming again…"

She went down the list of people that were going to be joining them for dinner. "The Smiths, The Wahbergs, The Warfs…am I forgetting anybody?" She wondered.

Did Ryuk even want to come to Christmas dinner? Keegan thought and shrugged. "Maybe he'll have a change of heart about Christmas." Maybe it was best that he didn't come, he probably didn't want to be around a bunch of people that he didn't know besides Keegan.

She was lost in thought while she exited the store to be met by Gevanni, Agent N, and Miss Lidner standing outside by an unmarked car.

"Hello Miss Phelps." Near greeted her casually.

"Boy, you're a real lounger, aren't you?" She said, looking Near over in that same pair of pajamas she had last seen him in. "What? Do you guys need another statement or what? I've got to get home and put groceries away. Christmas is tomorrow and I don't want to be late getting home. My aunt insists that we go to church at least on the holidays."

"Of course, that's fine. I understand." Near said with a nod. "It is the Holidays."

"The least we can do is give you a ride home, we can talk on the way there." Miss Lidner suggested. "Would you like that?"

Keegan didn't want to seem uncooperative, so she reluctantly complied. "My mom and dad used to always tell me not to get into cars with strange men, women, or people in general when I was little. I don't know if this should be an exception because you're cops."

"We assure you Miss Phelps, it's just in regard to recent events involving your ex-boyfriend." Gevanni tried to give a better explanation for their reasons. He opened the side door for Keegan and gestured for her to get in. "After you Miss Phelps."

She got in despite the fact she didn't want to. Once inside the car, Miss Lidner and Near followed suit. "What did you say your address was again?" Near asked.

"1531 Jefferton Avenue." Keegan responded, buckling her seatbelt. "Sorry, it's a precaution I always take. I never get into a car without putting my seatbelt on; safety first."

"We heard about your ex-boyfriend coming back for you again Miss Phelps, aren't you concerned that he could break out of prison again to try to come after you?" Miss Lidner asked with worry. "I mean, you're a young woman in a very dangerous situation."

'_Dangerous situation as opposed to what? They could also be using this as a cover up to try and say that I'm in danger if I keep striking back at Mr. Yagami.' _Keegan thought, holding her groceries to her so they wouldn't fall over. "Gee thanks so much for your concern of me, but I'm pretty sure he's not getting out this time. Even so, I think my boyfriend scared him out of his mind when he threatened to run him over with his bike. If you'd have been there, you would have seen that my current boyfriend had the front wheel positioned at Joe's crotch." She laughed fondly at the memory.

"Miss Phelps, we're talking about how you're life could have been threatened and you show no concern?" Near said, skeptical of how Keegan could be so calm and collective about the whole event that had happened before they had met in person and after they had met in person. "That's a bit odd, eh Miss Phelps?"

Keegan looked up at Near with her brow cocked before she shrugged. "Agent N, I was in a near death accident when I was a little girl. It was a car crash and my parents died in it. I guess…I'm no so scared of death anymore because I actually stared it in the face at some point in my life and I'm alive to tell the tale."

'_Ryuk…I wish you were here right now. I'm sick of getting asked questions about this; you usually know what to do. You usually know what to tell me right now. I shouldn't have left you home.' _Keegan gave Near a funny look. "Look, if you guys haven't anything else to ask of me, I've really got to get going."

The car stopped at her house and Gevanni turned around in the front seat. "Miss Phelps, we're here."

"Thank you for the ride home, I appreciate it." Keegan was let out from the car before Near appeared at the door with a small smile. "Miss Phelps…"

"Yes, Agent N?" Keegan said, a little annoyed.

"You've got a nice cat." And the door closed.

--

"Meowrrrrrr….hssss!" The mangy black cat pawed angrily at the shinigami as Ryuk came closer to him.

It was all he could do to pass the time by while Keegan was gone. He didn't feel like playing any video games (since he'd played every game Keegan had, including the crappy original Playstation Games) so all he could do now was taunt Lucil and wait for her to get home.

Ryuk had Lucil cornered in the kitchen, by the refrigerator, when Keegan came in with the groceries. "Hey, what took you so long? You were gone a lot longer than the last time you went to the grocery store. Something happen?"

The bags clunked down on the table and Keegan shooed Lucil away so that Ryuk wouldn't bother him anymore. "…Yes. The SPK, they gave me a ride home. I think they wanted to ask me some more questions but were hiding what they really wanted to ask me. They asked me about you, me, and Joe."

He turned his head towards the kitchen window and peered out at an unmarked car driving up the street and he frowned. "They're trying to figure out more about you."

"…They can't do anything to me Ryuk. I'm not breaking the law, and I doubt they'd expose me publicly. Unless they want me to stop bringing people back to life."

Ryuk was generally silent for once and didn't have a snide remark to give to her before he mumbled. "You know…the world wouldn't be messed up if Light had never found the Death Note."

She had just opened the fridge to start putting away the chicken and stuff that needed to be chilled before what Ryuk had said interested her. "What do you mean? 'Found' the Death Note?"

"…Light didn't find it on his own. And I didn't 'accidentally' drop it like I did the Life Script." Ryuk cracked his neck and an eerie silence followed.

"What?" Keegan said, dropping a can of cranberry sauce.

"Remember when I told you…I only came here because I was bored?"

Keegan could only give a subtle nod. "Yeah…?"

"I dropped the Death Note to get some entertainment." Ryuk admitted, not knowing whether to be ashamed or just hate himself at this moment because he just told Keegan what could have ultimately been an end to their relationship.

He suddenly found the can that had been in her hand hurled at his head and he hit the floor hard by the impact. When he sat up again, he found Keegan gripping the salt and pepper shakers in her hands with a death pressure until she hurled them at him too.

"Aah!"

"HOW COULD YOU BE SO CARELESS RYUK?!" She screamed.

"Keegan it-Ow! Ow! Ow!" He was pelted with several apples from the fridge now. "I can-OW!"

"YOU PUT THE WHOLE WORLD IN DANGER AND YOU DIDN'T EVEN BOTHER TO TELL ME BEFORE?!" Keegan stomped towards him and slapped him in the face.

"Ugh. Stop acting like a kid throwing a tantrum Keegan!" He caught her hands a wrought iron grip in his bony fingers and snarled at her. "WILL YOU SHUT UP AND LISTEN TO ME?!"

She stopped struggling, but only because the grip on her hands hurt so badly. Did shinigamis have super strength or what? "What were you thinking?" She said, obviously mortified by how he would have acted so thoughtlessly just because he was 'bored'.

"That's only something humans do Ryuk. How could you?" She whispered in horror.

"…I dropped it long before I met you Keegan. It was a long time ago when I didn't think for any particular reason. I just sat back and watched to see what happened next, like a movie almost." He admitted. "I didn't care about consequences then like I do now. But then again…had I known that dropping the Life Script would have a different outcome than the Death Note…I'd drop the Life Script over again just to replay it over and over a because we met Keegan. If Light had never picked it up and used it, I would have never stolen the Life Script and you'd be dead somewhere because I wasn't here to protect you from Joe. TJ would be dead too. Can you be angry at me now?"

She ripped her hands from his grasp and opened her mouth to scream at him, but found she was at a loss for words.

"You know what they say about destiny Keegan?" Ryuk asked. "They say it comes full circle."

"How would you know that I'd be dead Ryuk? You told me I had a long life span." Keegan said through clenched teeth.

"You do…Even without the Life Script, but that's the funny thing. I can read your life span, but it's confusing. You've got a life span that fluctuates with the decisions you make in life. It's very unusual Keegan. See, if you and I would have never met, Joe could have killed you at some point." Ryuk pondered on what he said for a moment before he looked up at the ceiling. Then a horrible thought hit him: "Joe could have possibly just stalked you your whole life until he waited for the right moment to kill you."

Ryuk's next words sent a chill down her spine. Joe? Stalking her 24/7 and just waiting for a right moment to kill her? There was a change on Keegan's face and he saw an emotion he didn't think he'd ever seen in her before. Fear.

Fear was an emotion that made humans pathetic to look at, but Keegan's definition of fear was far above pathetic. She looked honestly terrified. Terrified because she had made a decision in order to make a better decision for herself and it could have ended tragically or violently. She never really seemed to care about her own life like she did anyone else's which was intriguing about her because Keegan was just always a selfless person and never wanted for more or less.

The fact that she looked so vulnerably afraid was a bit sad, usually she seemed so brave but at this point in time she was at a loss for words and frozen in place. "…Do you know how I would have died if Joe would have killed me?" Her voice shook.

He couldn't really tell her how she died but…maybe if he made it subtle."…Let's just say lead isn't a very soft material when it hits you up close." Ryuk told her.

Whatever feeling she had left in her legs was gone, because Keegan suddenly collapsed to the floor without warning and lay on the floor in some sort of catatonic state before Ryuk stood over her with a brow cocked at her behavior.

"…What are you thinking about right now?" He asked her.

She didn't answer him for several long and painful moments before Keegan whimpered. "The car crash." She said suddenly.

"What car crash?" Ryuk said, not understanding. It wasn't long before he realized she was thinking about her parents that very moment."

It was too tempting not to ask, to be able to hear it in every detail but if Keegan had been there Ryuk had to know. "What do you see, Keegan?"

Her hands were clutched around her in a tight self-hug and she felt her face grow hot and her eyes stinging. "Dad's driving. Mom's in the passenger seat looking back at me while I hold the bag of groceries safely on the floor."

There was little he could do at this moment before he continued to ask her. "Is she in a good mood this time?"

Keegan sniffled. "Mom's smiling, she's not yelling, she's not talking about God. Dad's got the radio on some country station." It was as though she was there, reliving it. Ryuk couldn't believe this, how awful did that have to feel?. "The seats are a warm leather. It's a hand-me-down Cadillac." Her voice was wavering now.

"What's your mom talking about?" He crouched down to her level to get a better look at her face. She was on the brink of tears.

"She's asking me if I want to go to the park tomorrow." Keegan sputtered.

"And your dad?" He continued.

"He said it would be a good idea, because he was off work the next day." She felt her eyes stinging again.

"Then what?"

"I was about to answer when it happened. The other car hit the Cadillac. Mom hit her head against the dashboard. The airbag didn't save her." She began bawling. "I couldn't hear her crying for me. So I knew she was gone."

Oh, the agony. Ryuk couldn't look at her when Keegan lost it. "Oh…Keegan."

"Dad's bleeding!" She cried. "He's crying for me and mom. I can't help them!" It was hard not to pay attention to Keegan. She seemed to cry a lot after they had some sort of argument, but this time it was different just like when she had told him she loved him.

"I can't help them! I can't…I can't help….There's blood everywhere." She wept. "The other driver's getting out of the car and yelling at us to get out and look at the damage 'we' caused." She sobbed. "Dad can't move, mom's dead, I can't cry! I can't cry for them because I'm too scared from the shock. THERE'S BLOOD EVERYWHERE!"

She found the cold leather of Ryuk's chest against her face again and she curled up closer to him tightly. "Mom!" She cried. "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!"

It wasn't much he could do at this point because Keegan was facing her ghosts and it must have hurt after the longest time of holding everything in for 12 years. "I think she's not mad at you anymore." He mumbled, not knowing what else to say.

There wasn't anything to really say except gather Keegan up in a tight embrace and basically just lock her there so she wouldn't try and escape to her room to cry. "…I'm sure they're in heaven, Keegan."

--

Hours later, she was sitting next to Ryuk on the couch with a box of tissues next to her in case she started crying again.

"Dad used to watch M.A.S.H a lot when I was little. Mom had her soap operas." Keegan rubbed her nose with a tissue in her hands with the laptop on her coffee table.

"What about your grandmother? You never were affected by her death? You said you went to live with her and then finally Aunt Carol. What happened to your grandmother?"

Keegan opened the laptop. "I wasn't as affected by my grandmother dying because she was all ready 80 something years old and I was just this little kid who didn't think about anything else but the car crash at the time. My grandmother was deaf, so I always used to have to communicate to her with sign language. She was a great woman; this was my dad's mother. My maternal grandparents died when I was little. She used to cut the crusts off my sandwiches just like dad, and then I'd get upset and not eat because she cut them just like dad and she'd cut the crust off by cutting out the middle of the sandwich in a circle. That way it was nothing like the way dad cut it."

She chuckled. "I used to get so mad at her because she would say I looked just like dad and I'd hate it when she talked about y parents when I was little. I attended catholic school up until I was in freshmen year of high school."

"So, we're basically gonna sit here and listen to your life story?" Ryuk laughed. "Real original Keegan."

She was silent for moment before she looked up at Ryuk with a smile. "Why do you always put up with me crying?"

"…because it makes me upset when you get upset." He told her. "It makes me think someone's hurt you and I need to make you feel better."

"Aunt Carol says that too. She gets sad when I get sad. She used to make me spaghetti and meatballs whenever I got upset because her philosophy was: Spaghetti always makes smiles."

"What a stupid philosophy." Ryuk scoffed.

"It worked for me." Keegan sniffled.

"Yeah, yeah. You gonna quit crying for today? It's Christmas and I don't feel like having to listen to anymore sad stories for today." He asked.

"Yeah, I've got work to do. Some more loose ends to fix."

--

"_Do what needs to be done."_

Aizawa seemed to be lost in thought before Matsuda shook him out of his thoughts. "Hey, You okay? You seem out of it lately."

"Hmm? Oh. Yeah. I guess it's just this damn Kira case again. I feel like we're not getting any closer to solving this case." Aizawa rubbed his forehead. "Ahhh…I can't stand it. I wish we could call it case closed but…then Light would think we're giving up." _'Do what needs to be done.' _He thought. "I'm going home. I don't feel very good."

Matsuda watched as Aizawa got off the sofa in the office and left. He felt kind of bad for the guy, knowing that it must have been hard trying to support his family while working almost 24/7. He scratched the back of his head before Light came into the room. "Huh? Aizawa go home all ready?"

"Yeah…he's not feeling well." Matsuda said with concern. "He looked kind of sick. I just hope he's not coming down with something while we're on the case."

'_Aizawa's been weird all day. It's like something's bothering him. Hm. I just hope it's got nothing to do with his health. We need everyone's help we can get.' _Matsuda thought.

"Oh. Hey, I'm going to get some coffee and bring it back. Tell everyone else." Light said, closing the office door behind him. When Light was gone, Matsuda went over to the computer and opened it. In the background of the criminal database, he saw that the Kuro-Neko images were still up and he thought over Kuro's whole attitude towards the Task Force in general. Each time anyone else questioned Kuro, This anti-Kira agent seemed to give only Light lip about anything before cutting the transmissions short.

He skimmed through the pictures before a sudden Kuro transmission came up and Matsuda was all by himself to answer. "…H-Hello?"

"_Task Force."_

"Hm? Oh. No. Not all of the Task Force. It's just Matsuda right now. Kuro, right?" He asked to be sure.

"_Yes, you are correct. Hello Mr. Matsuda. Nice to meet you. I don't believe I've been given the chance to speak with each Task Force member individually. Is this a new plan Agent L is trying out to find out who I am?"_

"Hm? No…I don't thinks so. Agent L never told me anything about a plan. So I don't think there is one." Matsuda scratched the top of his head. "Why?"

"_I want you to be sure. Check the room for cameras and recording devices please, I'd greatly appreciate it. I have things I'd like to discuss with you Mr. Matsuda. I previously spoke with Mr. Aizawa the last transmission. Maybe if I hear it from you."_

Hear what? No, never mind that. Kuro? The infamous Anti-Kira Kuro wanted to talk to him? He didn't know whether to be concerned or excited. "Oh…uhm…Okay."

Matsuda did as Kuro asked and found nothing. He took time to look thoroughly before he returned to the laptop. "All clear."

"_Good, now Mr. Matsuda, I assume that you have no further leads in the Kira case…in how many months or so?"_

"Oh, leads? I don't even know. It's been a while. I just handle filing and special operation plans. You could call me the errand boy sometimes. I don't like my job very much."

"…_Do you tire of looking for Kira?"_

"Something always says that you know who Kira is. Is this true, Kuro?" Matsuda pulled up the spinning desk chair towards the computer and sat down in it.

"_Oh Mr. Matsuda. I do know who Kira is, but I can't tell you because I said before it could lead to emotional damages."_

"Well…if you don't want to tell us…how will we catch him?" He asked. "You don't make sense sometimes Kuro. It's almost as if you're-"

"_Like Kuro-neko? I'm random? I'm spontaneous?"_

"Yeah. Like you're a little kid playing a game." Matsuda sighed. "It's great because you're able to combat Kira. But we haven't see Kira try to kill any of those criminals you brought back to life. Why is that?"

"_Kira can't. My powers counteract his. His powers are useless against me."_ Kuro told Matsuda plain and simple.

"All right, so you seem like a relatively nice person. You're only rude to Agent L. Why is that?"

"_I don't like rude people, Mr. Matsuda. Agent L is no exception because I find his whole attitude towards me rude. I mean really, what idiot tries to figure out someone who is saving the world from a monster?"_ Kuro said with an annoyed tone.

"You know…come to think of it…you're right? Why would Agent L want to try to find you? You're not a suicidal target asking for Kira to kill them." Matsuda sounded rather surprised. "You just sound-"

"_Like I know why Agent L's looking for me?"_ Kuro asked suspiciously.

Matsuda placed a hand over his mouth. "_But…_What about Kira? If Kira can kill us by name and face and manipulate the death…How can-"

"_Do you fear Kira…Mr. Matsuda?"_

Matsuda didn't answer for a minute before he nodded. "I don't want to tell anyone…but I'm always afraid to some extent. I'm always the coward."

"_You're confusing cowardess with common sense, Mr. Matsuda. It's common sense to be afraid that you're going to die or be killed. So I ask you this-"_

"Yes?" Matsuda got close to the computer screen.

"_Do you want me to grant you immunity from Kira?"_

Matsuda stared at the screen with his mouth slightly agape. "How can you do that?"

"_My power, I need your name and face just like Kira does. But I can just find your picture on the database. Just like Mr. Aizawa, just like you…he fears Kira too. So I ask you…will you let me protect you?"_

"Why…would you want to protect us?" Matsuda asked softly.

"_Why not? I'm against Kira enough as it is. Let's start at the 'root' of Kira's problem."_

Matsuda looked at his I.D card and looked at the screen with a frown as he thought of Light's attitude and face towards Kuro. How could he act that way to someone who was saving the world from Kira's death and destruction."

"I put my faith in you, Mr. Kuro."

"_Miss. Mr. Matsuda. It's Miss."_ Kuro chuckled. "_Of course, you will keep our conversation to yourself and speak of it to no one except Mr. Aizawa. Understood."_

Matsuda nodded. "Yes. I understand."

--

As Keegan looked at the pictures of Matsuda and Aizawa on the computer she wrote their names in the Life Script.

"_It is done."_

--

It was snowing the next morning when Keegan woke up to look out the window at the streets. It was mainly flurries but they soon began to lie and Keegan giggled at the sight. Ryuk was lying on his side with his back as support for Keegan as she slept curled underneath her covers last night. Ryuk wasn't really asleep but lost in thought before Keegan's arms were thrown around his neck. "Merry Christmas!"

"Aah! Keegan, what are you doing? Get off!" He exclaimed, trying to pry her arms off him. "You're choking the life out of me!"

Of course Ryuk only said this because he didn't want her crushing her present he had stashed away. Keegan immediately got out of bed to rush downstairs in her pajamas. Leaving Ryuk alone in her room, changing into his human form before he peeked his head out of the door with worry that Keegan might jump him if he stepped out the door. She was sneaky enough as it was. "Keegan…"

"Oh, Roy," Aunt Carol said with a yawn. "Good morning. I feel like you live here now or something. Have you been here long?"

"Oh. Uh…no. But Keegan woke me up early and scared the hell out of me." He said. "This is kind of my first Christmas. My parents are uh…well. Their not Catholic and we really don't celebrate anything really." He scratched the top of his head.

"Well, we're glad you could celebrate it with us. Presents are downstairs. I got you something."

Aw. Damn. Gift giving? That sucked. Not that he wouldn't enjoy presents but Keegan's aunt had actually gotten him something? This woman must have been a saint if she raised Keegan all of her life. "Ohh…ah…wow. Thanks. I wasn't-You didn't have to-"

"Shoo. Before I push you down the stairs with the broom in my closet boy, it's Christmas and you're not staying up here cooped up in Keegan's room."

He found her aunt's words a bit creepy and he came down the stairs to see Keegan sorting gifts. There was a knock and TJ and his family were coming in then.

Oh no. More people. Something he disliked a lot was a large crowd. It was just TJ, his mother, his father, his sister, and his aunt with baby Rico cooing in his mother's arms. "Ohh…uh…"

"Hey! Who's this?" TJ pointed at Ryuk with a bag of presents in his hand. "Keegan, I thought you wouldn't get another boyfriend after Joe."

Ryuk clenched his teeth. "Please, don't mention him. I'm half tempted to crash any old car into the jail he's being held at to kill him."

At that moment TJ's attitude changed and he laughed. "Oh, you wanna kill Cholo too? You cool man!" He laughed. "Feliz Navidad, my brother."

"Oh…yeah. Uh. Merry Christmas too." Ryuk said, unsure of what TJ meant when he said 'Merry Christmas' in Spanish.

"Hi, TJ." Keegan laughed, picking up several boxes that were for him and his family. "TJ, this is Roy. We've been seeing each other since I broke up with Joe. I…didn't want to tell anybody because I wanted it to be a surprise."

"Oh! That was you with the bike on cholo's crotch, man! That was cool, you lookin' so badass!" TJ was punching Ryuk in the arm playfully. "Hey man, I saw that. So cool. How much did that bike cost? You buy it especially for that occasion?"

"Nope. Given to me as a gift." Ryuk said, suddenly smug about his bike, though he knew Keegan was fuming mad inside at him for even mentioning that stolen bike.

"Tito, mi hijo. Stop." His mother insisted, cursing at him in Spanish to behave before he got into any trouble.

Keegan shook her head before she went over to Rico and began fawning over him. "Oh! There's the baby, did Santa Claus bring you something good for Christmas?" She giggled, being allowed to hold him because she used to babysit TJ. "Aww…Hi Rico."

The baby cooed in her arms and began laughing when Keegan made faces at him ad gave him back to his mother. "Aunt Carol's cooking breakfast in the kitchen, but if anyone wants apples-"

"Hands off! Apples are mine." Ryuk suddenly shouted.

"…Damn, man. Chill."

Upstairs in Keegan's desk drawer though...

The Life Script started glowing again: _Rule # 18: The user of the Life Script's life span may fluctuate up and down from time to time. Shinigamis who are in the binding contract of the Life Script with the human user are allowed to tell the human their death if it is requested of them to be told. The effects of the answer though may result in the Life Script feeding off the emotion of the human user not of its own will though._

_Rule # 19: All humans will eventually die, the Life Script does not grant immortality but prolongs a human's life span to a much longer period than what it once was before (i.e: A man who was supposed to die at 72 but dies at 43. When the man is brought back his original life span is set back to what age he was supposed to die at. Or if an infant dies and if brought back to life, the child will live to see old age)._

--

Authoress Note: Now this was a chapter I really liked. I hope everyone else did too. Thanks for reading, keep an eye out for the next chapter. Read and Review.


	25. Pandora's Box Holds Schrodinger's Cat

Authoress Note: Aw, it's so cold out. That makes me sad, but I guess it can't be helped. All righty then, Chapter 24 was moderate though I do have some insight to offer for some of you guys today. Also, let me know if you checked out the Death Note Final Conclusion too. I thought it was really good. Most of it seems like deleted scenes but still, there's this really cool one with Ryuk in it. I loved it.

Reviewer Acknowledgements:

Sharnii Brooke: (glomps) Welcome back! How are you? We've missed you! TJ? And Ryuk? Friends? Sorry that's not _really _going to happen, Ryuk's just tolerating TJ because they share a common interest in hating Joe together. Haha. Yeah, I decided to go for a more 'it's Keegan's ghosts, she needs to deal with them on her own' point of view instead of going for an all out 'let's show everybody the blood and gore'. Thanks.

Shoue: Well, thank you for falling in love with the story. I hope you like how it will end too.

KakaIru-luver: Hey! Bring that apple back! Those are for Ryuk! Heyyyyy. Oh well. I guess I'll have to buy another one. Thanks!

Mageofice88: Ah, but my friend if I were to give too much away it would ruin the ending. I do have a great surprise ending in story though.

Sahxyel: I feel as thought I owe you a really good explanation for the 'off-ness' of Keegan freaking out and she and Ryuk's argument. I decided not to write out the memory in detail because it just seemed pretty clear all ready, her parents died in a car crash due to an aggressive driver. But of course, I think as a character to actually her relive watching it through a vivid memory written out in full detail didn't seem like a good idea to me. So I just had her tell Ryuk was she saw instead. This chapter was about Keegan facing the ghosts of her past and actually get upset over the fact her parents were dead. Also, I mean, I COULD have showed you the scene where her parents died but I didn't think people want to really see a little girl's parents die in a car accident.

That's just sad.

The fact she and Ryuk got into an argument is also significant. Haha. It seems like every time they get into a fight she gets upset over something, which I find pretty funny.

The last couple rules posted were also in reference to the binding contract that Ryuk shares with Keegan in the Life Script. He's technically allowed to tell her how she 'could' have died had he not been there because the events were prevented from happening. There's also a Shinigami law that states that shinigamis can't kill humans other than using a Death Note, but I figure if Ryuk does kill Joe it might be with the bike because he's not technically touching Joe with his bare hands and can make up any old story because it would be believable with vehicles nowadays in the human world.

I figured that the fact that Ryuk had told Keegan that Joe was going to kill her eventually in time traumatized her because she had faced death as a child and death in a sense was probably 'warning' her that it would be back. So the fact that she realized Joe could have been waiting to kill her well into her 30s and 40s signifies also just how crazy Joe is.

That is a possible set back to the Life Script, but it also doesn't specify how long that person has to live AFTER you save them with it. Another set back is that you can't write the person's name in the Life Script twice unless it's a different person with the same name.

PiScEs-BlOsSoM69: Well, it's Ryuk and Christmas I don't think seem to mix. Haha. He practically knows nothing about the holiday, and he himself told Keegan he thought it was stupid…then again Why did he get her that present? Teehee.

Also, thanks to everyone else out there who's supporting the story from afar or while they're working on other things. Hope to see you in time for the finale of the story.

--

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps) and others, belong to me. Thanks._

_--_

Christmas hadn't gone over the way Keegan had hoped it would be. Just a bunch of family friends really, but unfortunately the Wahbergs, Smiths, and Warfs all called out and had to spend time with their own families together. They couldn't make it and so Keegan, Ryuk, and Aunt Carol were stuck with TJ and his family. Not that the experience was necessarily terribly but TJ wasn't exactly the best guest to have during the holidays.

For instance, TJ when excited, talked. He didn't just talk in that sense where he was just excited but he was just in such a good mood that he started mixing his English and his Spanish together to the point where his father actually started cursing at him at the table before he finally shut up. Much to Aunt Carol's dismay. Everybody seemed to be getting along just fine until the subject of Joe came up and TJ started talking about Joe from the other day and everybody couldn't help but excuse themselves from the table at dinner to go and open presents in the living room. IT was obvious: Nobody wanted to hear anymore about Joe.

It actually got to the point where TJ couldn't shut up because he was sugar high on chocolate, cookies, and homemade cranberry sauce before Ryuk actually locked him out of the house. Ryuk of course seemed to be having fun messing with TJ because for once he was actually sick and tired of all the company and decided the best way to get rid of it was to lock one party member out of the house.

Mr. Juarez, TJ's dad, couldn't stop laughing at his son out in the snow banging on the windows and crying that the _cucuy _was going to get him. Or something about '_la llorona'_ which Keegan shook her head at.

After TJ's family left, Keegan and Aunt Carol had a long talk about court and stuff and keeping Joe away. It actually came to the point where Aunt Carol wanted to move out of Jefferton and Keegan left the room angry about the idea. All Keegan wanted to do for the rest of this week was forget about Joe, forget about everyone in general, and focus back on stopping Mr. Yagami from reigning as 'Kira'.

--

Unfortunately:

_"I will eliminate you in the name of God. Do you hear me Kuro? ELIMINATE! ELIMINATE YOU! You've been pressing too far into my God's plan into creating a perfect world. I shall be sure to make you suffer for it like so many other criminals have. I'll kill you, infidel. I shall eliminate you from this earth by God's good grace."_

"…What are you? A computer virus?" Keegan said with her brow twitching in annoyance at being called an 'infidel'. "How can I be an infidel if I don't believe in anything really?"

Now it was several weeks after Christmas and Keegan was starting to find herself receiving death threats from a Mr. Mikami, who was supposed calling himself 'God's right hand man'.

Keegan tapped her pencil against the laptop as she relayed the messages she'd received over the holidays from 'God's right hand'. And decided that it was going to have to be a nasty fight with this man as well.

"He doesn't know who I am, and I sure as hell don't who he is." Keegan sighed. "Ryuk…do you know who Mr. Mikami is?"

Ryuk, after growing bored of playing Guitar Hero after so many weeks, now had his sights on Keegan's Nintendo DS and wasn't really paying attention until she tugged on his arm. "Hey. I'm asking you something."

"Huh? Oh. Sorry. What about Mikami?"

"Who is he?" Keegan asked.

"Oh yeah, him. Well he's a prosecutor of sorts in Japan. Legal dealings and such." He explained. "Light's Right Hand Man." He pondered. "I traded Shinigami eyes to him once in exchange for half his lifespan. He's pretty smart, like Light, but I think he's got some head problems." Ryuk made a swirly signal around the side of his head and Keegan groaned.

"A basket case?! He's a basket case? Oh no…If there's one more thing I need is dealing with another crazy person besides Joe…" Keegan sighed while playing the message over again. "So, these Shinigami Eyes, he won't be able to use them on my if he tries to."

"That's right. The Life Script states that in an earlier rule Keegan." Ryuk said, tapping the stylus against the touch-screen on the DS. "So, you seem to be in less than a good mood from the past couple weeks. Christmas still bothering you?"

Keegan glanced over at Ryuk and he in turn was staring at her with those golden eyes again. "Yes. It is. Why are you reading my lifespan again?" She asked, a little annoyed. He'd been doing that for the same amount of time she'd been angry at Christmas.

"It's been steady since Joe's been in jail. I want to make sure it stays that way." Ryuk gave her his best explanation before he went back to playing the game awkwardly. "Did I do something?"

"No…" Keegan sighed, reassuring him. "It's just TJ's behavior at Christmas about Joe. His family's so rambunctious. Even getting him to calm down." She rubbed her temples. "I find myself wondering how I manage to put up with him."

"Because he's like your baby brother." Ryuk taunted humorously.

"Oh, yeah. I forgot." Keegan shook her head. "Well, if Mr. Mikami wants to be mean and nasty to me then I think it's only common courtesy I return the same unfavorable behavior."

Ryuk suddenly perked up at the idea. "Hm. He's a little hot-headed. A bit more than Light sometimes when he's angry. You sure you wanna get into a brawl with Mikami?"

"Mikami antagonized me first, so I'll provoke him back." Keegan said with a foreboding tone.

--

_"…Hello."_

While doing some office work at home, Mikami's head jerked upwards when his laptop suddenly spoke and he glanced over at it, turning his head slowly until the laptop spoke again.

_"You know who this is…Mr. So-called-Right-Hand."_

Mikami turned his chair around to face the laptop and he grit his teeth. "So…you speak to me at last. How careless you must be to think you can win against God." He told Kuro smugly.

_"I have my confidence…Mr. Mikami."_ Kuro assured, addressing him by his name.

Mikami almost jumped out of his seat and he rushed towards the laptop. "What is this? How do you know of my name?"

_"…Divine intervention, Mr. Mikami. Divine intervention. Now, I want you to listen very closely because I know you'll go right back to your 'god' with this information I am about to give you. Kira's probably all ready frustrated with my next move so I'll just say this. The next time you try and kill someone who is getting closer and closer to interfering with your 'God's' plans, your powers won't work and you'll be left at a loss for words as to how I could do it and why I did it."_ Kuro informed him.

"Why should I do what you say?" Mikami hissed at the screen. "Your powers are nothing but a mild irritation to the peace that God is making in this world with his power of death given to the guilty."

_"…Your judgments have been clouded and your spirit is deranged, Mr. Right-Hand. I suggest you do much soul searching and begin to wonder about your own self. If you and your God kill all of the criminals on earth, wouldn't that leave you and Kira as the only criminals left behind? Wouldn't you have to eliminate yourself from the earth because you realize that you are killers yourselves?"_

Mikami grinned maniacally at the computer. "Sorry. But I believe God will save our souls by rewarding us for our good deeds."

_"If you believe your 'god' is so great, does he treat you with praise and admiration? Does he adore you for your efforts? Or does he just leave you to your own devices like the cold calculating ice-blooded monster that he is?!"_

"YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO SPEAK!"

_"Face it, Mr. Mikami. You can't catch me. You can't stop me and that's what frightens your God too. He knows not of who I am or of my origins and how I came to have this power. When you look at a coin that lands on its edge how do you determine which side is the side that will win in the game of 'heads and tails'?"_ Kuro questioned.

"Think of it this way…God and I are heads, and you are tails. Whichever side the coin has more motivation on, that will be the winning side. I have faith." Mikami told Kuro, obviously growing more and more irritated with Kuro's casual behavior and riddles towards him.

_"Is it faith? Or is it fear Mr. Mikami?"_ Kuro was now challenging his beliefs.

"You dare question my faith in my God? You do not even know how much good he is doing for this world."

_"I know that he has no regard for human life whatsoever and neither do you. So I ask again, Mr. Mikami. Is it FAITH? Or FEAR?"_

"…It has been and always will be faith."

_"Then your cause is a lost one. Death does not last forever."_

"Only for those who deserve it…" Mikami growled.

_"Ah, very well. I'll leave you to your delusions about your God and this plan. Know this though, after this conversation I predict you will go whine to your God about me picking on you, then my assumption will be he'll send me a message. Kuro ordered. "Is this clear?"_

"…Crystal." Mikami sneered. "May I go?"

_"…Do as your free will allows you to do."_

--

"I think that went well…" Keegan said, not really too pleased with the events that just took place, but she was satisfied. "I think this should turn out interesting." She leaned back against the couch comfortably before Ryuk glanced up from the DS and turned it off.

"Hey, Keegan." He said suddenly.

Her arms behind her head, Keegan opened one eye to look over at him. "Oh? You're attention isn't on a video game for once?"

"…I got something for you, but I didn't want to give it to you at Christmas because I just thought it was stupid to do on that day." Ryuk scratched the back of his head and he suddenly handed her the closed velvet box. Keegan gave him a funny look and stared at the box in his gangly hands before she took it from him.

"Don't tell me, you stole this right?" She waved it at him with a shake of her head.

"Not this time, I stole the money to get it for you. So this isn't technically stolen." Ryuk was fidgety the whole time and got up to leave the room. "I need an apple."

"Bottom drawer to the left, not the right. You ate a 'grapple' last time and I don't think you liked it very much." Keegan called to him before she opened the box a smidgen to peek inside.

She almost slammed it shut before opening it again to look at the beautiful medallion inside. Well, to her it was beautiful. She closed it rapidly and she looked around awkwardly at the thought that Ryuk had actually gotten her something. Oh…how sweet.

She opened the box again and stared at the necklace with a small smile. "Ohh…it looks like Lucil circling his way around the moon." She said with clear admiration of the piece of jewelry. "Oh, Ryuk! Thank you."

"What?" He called, not being able to hear her from chomping down on the apple in his mouth. "For what?"

"You didn't have to get me this!" She called.

He swallowed the core and peeked at her through the kitchen window that peered into the living room. "Huh? Ohh…yeah. Uh. That. Hah. Yeah…I thought you might like it. I mean, it's a symbol of 'Kuro' all over. Right?" He said, stealing another apple from the fridge and chowed down on it nervously. "Yeah, you're uh…welcome I guess."

She took it out of the box and clasped it around her neck and looked down at it with glee. "It's perfect, aw. Thank you."

"…Again. You're welcome. Now stop thanking me all ready." He grumbled, crumbs spewing from his mouth.

"Why? Are you embarrassed by that?" Keegan chuckled, turning the t.v on. "I bet Mr. Yagami's none too pleased to hear that Kuro has contacted his Right Hand to threaten him."

It didn't take very long before Keegan received an incoming transmission on her laptop and she laughed. "Ohh…He's mad now."

Ryuk couldn't help but have to see this and was quickly in the living room before one could say: 'hopscotch'. "Oh, this I gotta see. After questioning Mikami's faith, I can only imagine what you're going to question him about after that little incident."

--

_"Kuro, have you no respect for privacy? Now you have to go badgering my followers? Just how much longer are you going to make the world suffer by keeping these criminals alive?"_

"You're clearly upset by the fact that I didn't come to you and instead went to your little bitch boy. Aw. You're missing me all ready? I haven't even contacted you and you seem to be jealous of the fact that my sights have turned onto another prospective murderer." Keegan explained, casually shaking her head and looking over at Ryuk as he pulled out her DS again to start playing and eavesdropping at the same time.

_"How do you know that Mikami is my 'Right Hand's' real name?"_ Kira's tone was livid.

Keegan frowned. "How many times must I continue to tell you that it's divine intervention?"

--

"Don't give me that trash! I know about shinigamis, Kuro! I know you do too!" Light slammed his fists down on the computer desk. The rest of the Task Force had gone home for the day and Light was left alone in the middle of the night at the office with not a lot to go on with the Kuro case after abandoning it. Even though he'd been investigating more in secret, he found nothing; not an ounce of evidence to pinpoint as to whom Kuro was. Now, Light knew he was very good at reading people but Kuro was a mystery and a puzzle all in one.

_"You think a shinigami is helping me, Mr. Kira?"_ Kuro taunted.

"I…**know.**" Light growled at the screen.

_"Yes, and you think you know everything. Don't you? It's divine intervention either way. But why would a Shinigami bestow Life Giving power to me then if shinigamis are death gods?"_ Kuro's tone was now pushing a limit between annoyance and interest.

"…." Light couldn't respond to that. It was a good question. He didn't know whether Ryuk was helping Kuro or not. Ryuk had told him that he wasn't on his side and he wasn't on Kuro's. So what did that mean? Could an angel of some sort really have established a powerful life-giving object to Kuro? Could divine intervention really…?

"Why did you question, The Right Hand's faith?" Light asked.

_"It's also a question of your faith too…how loyal and faithful are you to the work of 'God', Kira? If you call yourself a God…whom are you working for? Is it for GOD or is it just for yourself as a 'god'?"_ Kuro asked.

"You're just trying to get me to feed information through to you so you can catch me…" Light stepped away from the laptop to cross his arms and stare at the window in front of him. "Of course it's not for me. It's for the whole world?"

_"I'm not trying to catch you at all, Kira. I'm just trying to expose you for the fake that you are to the world. I'm making the world realize that killing, no matter how you do it or if you do it for good, is still wrong no matter what."_ Now Kuro was testing his will._ "How long can you bear to languish in hiding until you either die or are exposed? How long can you bear to hide yourself with so many different authorities looking for you?"_

"Then they'll die too! They don't even know what good I'm doing for this world! Neither do you! A worthless interferer like you could never understand!" Light snapped, glaring at the screen.

_"You would kill innocent people who are only doing what their good job calls for in trying to catch you when they think of you as a criminal? Why…I bet you'd kill your own dear family if they found out that you were Kira."_ Kuro said, rather harshly comparing Light to a sociopath.

_"The first signs of a serial killer come from psychological disorders or torturing small animals as a child. Other forms of sociopath behavior also derive from forms of parental neglect or some other form of abuse. What's the matter, Kira? Somebody didn't love you when you were little? Did your mommy and daddy not give you everything you wanted?"_

Light suddenly picked up the laptop at the thought of Kuro talking about his own father and he threw it on the floor. He scowled at it and snarled. "WHO ARE YOU KURO?! YOU TELL ME WHO YOU ARE SO WE CAN END THIS! WHO ARE YOU!"

_"NO! Mr. Kira! You tell me…**Who are YOU?** Who are you to call yourself a God? God is not an individual that takes lives. God does not hate and God certainly does not kill just because he feels like it or because bad people deserve it. If you look closely at the work of GOD, you will see you and God are nothing alike."_

"What do you want from me…?" Light said, his voice shaking in fury. He picked the laptop up and shook it. "What do you want from me, Kuro?"

_"I want you to end this whole thing. I want you to stop playing the role of God and stop messing up the world."_ Kuro told him.

"…It's impossible for me to do that Kuro. Though…heh heh. I appreciate your efforts to try and sway me. I doubt seriously though that even if you do manage to defeat me, I'll take you down with me as well."

_"So…be it."_

--

The transmission ended and Keegan sat back in her seat on the couch and frowned. "This is going to be hard to do."

"Why? What are you planning Keegan?" Ryuk asked, looking up from the DS suddenly. "You actually are planning to get him out in the open?"

She nodded. "I am, but I think I'm going to need help. I have no choice. If I want him to get caught…"

"You're thinking about calling on the SPK?" Ryuk asked. "Keegan, that's a little extreme for you. Going to great lengths this time eh?" He leaned over her shoulder with a brow cocked.

It was a tough decision. Keegan didn't want to but this was the last straw. Listening to Mr. Yagami's temper towards her, she knew that this wasn't going to be easy if she was planning on getting him caught for the serial killer he was.

She turned her camera on and left the cap on it covered while she hooked it up to her computer. At that same moment, she felt as though she was getting closer and closer to the goal she had sought out in the beginning. "You're with me through this whole thing…right?" She glanced over at the shinigami sitting next to her, unsure if Ryuk would even answer.

"All the way." Ryuk assured. "Make him suffer, Keegan."

Keegan turned on a live stream and entered the database where to send it.

"Mr. N."

--

_"Mr. N."_

"We're receiving a live-stream from Miss Kuro, sir. Shall we accept it?" Miss Lidner asked.

"Of course we will." Near answered before Gevanni could cut in and respond for him. "I assume Kuro would only stream to us if t involved something very important." Near picked up the Kuro-Cat Chess Piece and placed it right in front of his own self-portrayed Chess Piece.

_"Mr. N, I've had a rough holiday, I can only hope yours was slightly better. I've recently had contact with Kira and I am none too please with my results of our conversation. If you can offer any insight into anything you know that I don't, would you please enlighten me?"_ Kuro requested.

"My apologies Miss Kuro, though I would like to this is a legal matter and giving you information on anything-" Near was cut off suddenly.

_"I have a plan, but I'll need you to handle all of the arrangement matters."_ Kuro suddenly suggested.

A plan? Hm. Near stared at the screen in contemplation. "You have a plan? All right. Let's hear it."

_"Tell me what you know of Mikami Teru, I understand he is Mr. Kira's 'Right Hand'."_

Near's brows rose with interest and he cocked his head to the side at the screen. "Very well… We have reason to believe that he is aiding our main suspect in the Kira killings. We've recently acquired the object that Mr. Mikami has been using to kill people by replacing it with a fake one, very well made fake one if I may add."

_"I see, if you're talking about The Death Note, then I bet there will be no doubt that you know what you're doing there."_ Kuro said, commending them on such an extreme effort.

_"If my plan is the same as yours then perhaps we should collaborate in this plan."_

"Our plan is to meet with the Task Force in a warehouse at a precise location. There we plan to present evidence and expose Light Yagami as Kira. Is that the same plan you had in mind, Miss Kuro?" Near asked.

_"Something along the lines of that. Yes. Here's what I had in mind. Let's sweeten the deal to have the Task Force even more willing to come out. It will allow your 'suspect' the chance to be able to have the opportunity to 'meet me' in person. The meeting of Kuro with the Task Force will be a trap for who you believe to be Kira and you'll have your man."_

"What if something unexpected happens?" Near asked.

_"Then we'll have to take that chance. I have faith in your plans. I trust you, Mr. N."_

"So, you will be the bait for our trap?" Near asked.

_"I shall. I willingly agree out of my own free will to accept this task. I promise you, you will not be disappointed in your catch. Mr. N."_ Kuro said in acceptance.

"Very well, let it be done." Near said, "Please secure a flight to Japan at a location that will be disclosed in time. When you touch down, we'll be waiting for you in the terminal. I'll have Miss Lidner text your phone."

_"Mr. N. Please do take caution when dealing with this man. I am well aware he is not of sound mind and is likely to snap at any given moment despite his calm and collected demeanor (my sources tell me this). I would appreciate you holding back until it is absolutely necessary to take him down for my public safety."_

"Miss Kuro, you are sure you know what you are doing?" Near asked.

There was silence from the laptop before the voice of Kuro responded: _"…I've known for a long time that this day might come. I just never expected this supposedly well planned collaboration to be negotiated so smoothly. Tell me, Mr. N, you are aware of who I am, I am sure of this. There's no denying it."_

"Well, you're hard to read, but I definitely would have to say if it's taken Kira a hell of time to find you and not kill you…I have to admit you must be some sort of genius." Gevanni chuckled to himself.

_"It's all common sense really, Mr. Gevanni."_ Kuro replied.

"Well then, if anyone has intercepted this message the only thing they won't know is your name or face. We'll try to keep that under wraps." Near assured. "Miss Kuro…we thank you for your time and effort in preventing Kira's strain of terror at bay. There is nothing more for me to say except: You've beaten death."

_"And I suppose you'd like to learn the secret?"_ Kuro chuckled.

"This is just speculation, but…if there exists a notebook of Death, the Death Note, is it not also possible there is one for Life as well?" Near asked.

_"I'd rather not give away any personal secrets, but then again…maybe there is."_

"And how would you have acquired such a power, if I may ask?" Near cocked his head to the side attaching a little white notebook to the Kuro-Cat chess piece with a smile.

_"It is simply divine intervention."_

"Well played." Near smiled in satisfaction at the large screen. "You've still got 9 Lives to bargain Miss Kuro. Let's see if they last you when you meet the Mighty Kira, face to face." Near said, staring at the chess piece of Light Yagami marked as 'Kira' with the little facemask. He pushed the Kuro Cat chess piece in front of it with a smile.

_"Erwin Schrodinger came long after Lewis Carroll, but it is my belief that the Cheshire Cat is an early form of Shrodinger's Cat. Lewis Carroll is never clear on what kind of 'Cheshire' Cat his kitty is, and the cat can appear to be anywhere and everywhere and sometimes even nowhere when he wants to me. So, it is my assumption that if Kira may strike at me…it's a toss of a coin landing on its edge. I could either be alive…or dead."_ Kuro explained cryptically.

What did she mean by that? Near seemed a bit confused until he thought on it. "You'll fake your death if you have to in front of him?"

_"He'll never know unless he opens the box, but that's not how the experiment is supposed to be performed. So…yes. Think of Schrodinger's Cat in the Box as Pandora's Box."_

"Which would mean?" Miss Lidner asked.

_"You, the SPK represent the 4 corners of the box, and I am inside the box."_

"So, if Kira were to open the box…." Near said, with a very sure look on his face he knew what Kuro was talking about.

_"If Kira opens the box, he may get a nasty surprise as Pandora did."_

--

The body, after careful examination, in the back of the large tractor-trailer truck, had taken a while to be identified as Kiyomi Takada's. Light of course seemed to be unfazed by this because he had gotten rid of Takada himself to establish the fact that she couldn't be caught lest she expose him ask Kira. It was unfortunate he had to kill her, but he knew if she was rescued the police would probably make her talk and he didn't need any of that happening. All that mattered was that nobody knew he was Kira. Everything was perfect, until Near wanted to meet with them.

Aizawa's face was livid as he stared at the screen while the news report went over the fact that the body inside the truck was in fact Takada's. It all made sense now, the reasons why Kuro had such hostility towards Light rather than any other Task Force member. Light didn't seem remorseful about this tragedy at all, where as the rest of the Force was affected in one way or another at least some concern was showed for her death by the other members, but from Light: nothing.

Now all of these 'spokespersons' wanted to represent Kira in replacement of Kiyomi Takada. How sick was this world today? Aizawa looked down at the floor, not really paying too much attention to the message Light was being given by Near until the Date and time caught his attention.

_'Matsuda and Ide…that could be the day when we all die.'_ Aizawa thought.

_'Ide doesn't know a thing about Kuro granting Aizawa and I immunity from Kira's wrath. I wonder if Kuro will spare him too. Even thought Kuro doesn't know him and never spoke with him.'_ Matsuda looked a little worried. "We can make that date, can't we?"

"That's the plan." Light said. "It's settled then."

_"I've set Miss Amane free. You need to call her to confirm it."_ Near informed.

Light did so, recalling that Misa had of course been taken into custody. He knew that thinking about the memory would do him no good. After hearing Misa's voice whine and complain about compensation or something in her fancy hotel room he told her to stay put and hung up, knowing she would. After that they were informed that the Notebook would stay in the Task Force custody but they had to take it out of the safe anyways with the confirmation passwords of each member.

When Aizawa punched in his password he was the first to open the safe and stare at the little black notebook with in it. 'The notebook that murders…' He stared at it for several moments before he thought over the rules in it. After they took it out, they strapped it to a special vest to him and he answered Near when addressed. "I'll carry it with me."

_" L. Is it all right if Mr. Aizawa carries the notebook?"_ Near asked.

"It's in our best interest if he does, yes." Light answered with a small smile.

_"Thank you. We'll see you at the scene."_

--

Keegan closed her laptop and sighed. "Well Ryuk. This timeline seems to be in our favor. Aunt Carol's leaving on a road trip with her girlfriends, so it will be good timing. I'll be able to book airline tickets when she leaves tonight."

"She's going on a road trip? Isn't she worried about Joe coming after you still?" Ryuk asked, skeptical of Keegan's plan.

"TJ's family's prosecutor made sure he's going to stay put in jail for a long time. There's not a chance he'll be able to get to me this time. I promise." Keegan assured.

"Keegan, you'll have to get there by yourself. You know. I can't go with you." Ryuk told her. "At least on the plan. And I'm not going anywhere without my bike." He went into the kitchen to stare out the window at the covered Nightrod VRSC. "It's mine ya know."

She followed after him into the kitchen and her arms reached around to hug him by the waist. "You mean it's yours now." She sighed. "You stole that remember."

"Tch. I'm not giving it back. I stole it fairly because some idiot didn't know what he was doing." Ryuk snorted. "It's not going back to the guy that gave it to me."

"Ryuk…how are you gonna get the bike to Japan and back?" Keegan asked, suddenly curious at the idea.

"How do you think Keegan? I'm gonna take it to the shinigami realm and then bring it back down to the location. I know my way around Japan, I'm FROM there." He reminded her.

"Just because you lived there with Mr. Yagami for who-knows-how-long doesn't mean you know-"

He reached around and covered her mouth with his hand. "Aw, shut up will ya! I know what I'm doin'!"

Keegan scrambled out of his reach with a frown and leaned against the kitchen counter. "This is really it…isn't it?" She asked.

"The last stand? Well…for Light maybe. But you it could be a whole knew beginning." Ryuk chuckled, suddenly crawling along the ceiling before he dropped back down in front of her. "…You're sure you know what you're doing though?"

She glanced over at the Life Script on the kitchen countertop before she gave it a serious look and picked the notebook up.

"Yes." She answered.

"Sure?" He got in her face with a grin.

"…Uh, yeah." She said, giving him a funny look.

"Positive." He said, putting his arm around her waist as he pulled her close to him.

"KNOCK IT OFF RYUK!" She snapped.

"…Heh heh. Just making sure." He snickered.

"I meant get your hands off my waist."

"…Oh."

--

Authoress Note: All right, well then. I've decided to string the story for just a little longer. You know what's sad folks? There's only two more chapters left to go. (GASP). I know. It's terrible, but we're almost at the end here. It's almost finished. But I promise you that you shall not be disappointed. Thanks, read and review, and stay tuned for the next installment of The Life Script.


	26. Down to the Wire

Authoress Note: Hello there guys! Yes, we are getting closer and closer to the end you guys. And Noooooo. I will NOT be giving hints to how the story ends. Sorry. But that's confidential.

Anyways, I will admit there are some changes to the ending chapters that correspond to the last episodes in the anime. So I apologize for any changes, I did so to suit the story line.

Anyways here we are with the reviewer acknowledgments:

Shoue: See, that's one of the problems I have with Death Note in a sense. They make certain characters so stupid and they don't really focus on the intellectual sides of them. I admit, I feel bad for Misa, I don't like her, but I understand why she's so clingy and stuff because she lost her parents at a young age and then someone tried to kill her (I don't think Gelus, the shinigami that saved her, should have died either). I mean, who wouldn't feel clingy after losing a parent you know? I appreciate the insight though. Unfortunately I can't support L x Misa. To me, and this is kind of messed up considering the Yaoi factor, It think it's always going to have to be L x Light. Thanks.

Sharnii Brooke: Sorry, but it has to end at some point. It can't keep going on forever. But then again…you never know. There could be a sequel. Maybe…but then again…maybe not. I'll never tell.

EssenceoftheNinja: I was reading through some old reviews for the story and I feel so horrible for not acknowledging you in the reviews at all. I apologize! Perhaps it was because I was usually in a hurry to read reviews and I didn't count how many had gained on chapter 2 at the time. Wow!

Sahxyel: See, I felt to go into big in depth detail because I knew there was that chewing little monster inside you that had a whole lot of mental questions that I thought might come up. I decided to emphasize more on the other characters in the last chapter because they really do make the story go by faster and the fact that Aizawa and Matsuda are being 'protected' is a good thing. They now know that if Light is indeed Kira, Kuro will stop him at whatever cost. Their faith in Light is slowly fading (Aizawa's more than Matsuda's) and the clock is ticking down. So I think I plan to blow you away with the finale. I think you'll like it's surprise ending. Thanks!

KakaIru-luver: Yes, you should. Teehee. This time I'm not giving anything away for what's going to happen in the end. No hints. Nada.

PiScEs-BlOsSoM69: Unfortunately it is, I don't think he'd ever want to get rid of it.

Haha. He's become materialistically attached to it. Teeheehee. It will be funny to see how he gets it to Japan though. I won't tell you how it will work out though.

tHePuNkPriiNcEzs: Yeah, you can picture that scene and his 'epic fail' face. Haha. That was my favorite part. I think everybody must have thought that part was kind of cute and sad at the same time.

--

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps) and others, belong to me. Thanks._

_--_

Acquiring a plane ticket to Japan wasn't hard, but Keegan left the next morning after Aunt Carol was gone. Standing outside her front door next to Ryuk in his human form before she turned to him with a small smile and her luggage all ready to go. "You've never seen me drive before have you Ryuk?"

"I wasn't even aware you had a license." He told her, a bit surprised by the fact she had her own car keys and a car to go with it. "I always thought this little blue car out here was the neighbor's. Thinking they never drove it though."

"Nope. This is Stella. Stella's my Volkswagen Beetle Convertible. It's one of those new-sed (new/used) cars." She explained. "I'm lucky I won't need a whole lot of things to take with me. I've got one suitcase."

"…You know that I won't be there to help you out of anything right away. I've gotta figure out how to get my bike there." Ryuk jabbed a thumb at the Nightrod with a chuckle.

Keegan nodded, pushing her suitcase into the trunk of her car. "You think you'll be okay without me?"

"I'll be there when you get there. Somehow." Ryuk shrugged.

As she closed the trunk, Keegan stepped over to him and kissed him on the cheek. "Thanks Ryuk, I know that you'd never let me down."

His cheek felt oddly warm by the little peck on his cheek and he rubbed it out of embarrassment. "Uh…yeah."

She frowned. "You sure you'll get there okay?"

"Don't worry about me, I'm more concerned about if Near and his team are meeting you there." Ryuk grumbled. "What if they're not there when you get to the terminal? You taking the Life Script with you?"

"Yes, and I know that you're worried about me Ryuk, but I'm 21 years old. I can handle myself." Of course Keegan knew she'd be kind of lonely on the trip there. "Aunt Carol's going to be gone for 2 weeks. So we're safe." Keegan sighed. "Well…I guess I'll see you when I get there."

Ryuk stood there in silence with her before she was suddenly pulled into a very brash hug. "I'll kill him if he comes after you. Do you hear me Keegan? It doesn't matter what you do or say…I _will_ KILL him for you."

She didn't have much anything to say before returning the embrace, and turning his face towards hers to briefly kiss him on the lips. "I know…I can't change your mind about that huh?"

"Of course, when his time comes it doesn't really matter. I can't die if it just looks like I'm doing my job." He grinned.

She pushed him away from her with a frown. "Oh, you ass. Don't joke about that." Keegan huffed. "All right well, I know you don't have a cell phone so I'll have to take your word for being there." She got into the little blue beetle with a smile. "Love you."

"…Yeah, you too." Ryuk chuckled softly before he watched the car drive down the road and out of sight.

He couldn't help but worry though if she'd meet a fate like her parents did and before he knew it he hopped onto the bike and shoved his helmet on with a scowl. "…I can't let her go alone." Thinking about how Keegan's parents died in the accident and how she had described it to him on Christmas Eve, he didn't want to think of Keegan dying the same way, even though it wasn't her time yet, Ryuk didn't know what to expect with the Life Script.

The bike blazed off into the streets as he cut through alleys and onto a separate highway headed in the same direction to make sure she got there safely. There was no telling if Joe would have somehow gotten out again and tried to run her down with his big expensive truck that he'd hit TJ with.

--

There was a nagging feeling in the back of her head about this little black blur way behind in the other lane while she drove, and Keegan of course knew that Ryuk probably wasn't okay letting her drive by herself. "Oh, bless him." She sighed, keeping the speed limit while she continued her route to the airport. By the time she'd arrived and paid to park, she got out just in time to see Ryuk pulling in between two cars to hide from her, she got out and slammed her car door with a frown before marching over to where he was hiding, only to suddenly be yanked into his parking space by him and crushed into a suddenly very imposing kiss she wasn't too pleased to get.

Her hands beat against the leather of his jacket before he finally let her go and she slapped him, of course feeling bad afterwards. "…Sorry." She apologized. "Impulse."

Ryuk rubbed his cheek. "I couldn't let you go by yourself. I had to make sure." He explained, before he grinned. "Where's the cherry chapstick today?"

Keegan really did slap him the second time on purpose. "Ryuk!"

"Ow! Okay, sorry!"

"Look, I'm here I'll be okay when I get on the flight. All right? You can't come with me until you get that bike somewhere where-"

"I should get on the plane with you." He suggested suddenly.

"Ryuk…you're not getting on the plane with me." Keegan sighed, her hand son her hips.

"It could crash, there could be terrorists, and they'd never find your body." Now he was making excuses for her not to go.

"Ryuk!" She snapped.

He got quiet. "I…"

"I know. Ryuk." She turned his face to her and she bit her lip. "I have to do this. I have to stop him, regardless of what happens. I have to save the world from him."

"But I need to go with you." Ryuk told her. "I'll feel guilty if I don't."

She pulled him into a quick hug and buried her face into the warmth of his jacket. "…I know you'll get there when you get there. I have faith in you."

There was a silence before he mumbled. "All right. I'll let you go."

"Thank you, Ryuk. I know you'll get there somehow."

--

Keegan felt bad having to leave Ryuk alone in the parking lot, but she had a job to do and it was hard thinking about him on the flight that she actually chose to sit in the back with an empty seat next to her, trying to pretend that he was there, when he wasn't. She thought it would be easy getting on the plane without him…but the more she thought about him the more she felt torn apart leaving him to try and aimlessly find her in a foreign country.

Before the flight took off, she texted Miss Lidner and turned her phone off. For the next few hours, Keegan was playing her DS, reading, sleeping, or drinking an Arnold-Palmer. Of course playing her DS didn't help much because she recalled that Ryuk enjoyed playing Cooking Mama 2 on it and she got kind of mad at herself because she was thinking about him the whole trip. Left all alone…

"Ohh…I miss him all ready."

--

How the hell did it come to this? Ryuk had actually taken his bike to the shinigami realm. He didn't even think he'd want to tell Keegan HOW he managed to get it here but he hated every second of it. For one, it was hard not be seen pushing his bike along in the shingami realm and NOT receive looks.

He was pulling and pushing it because he didn't want to mess it up through the Shinigami Realm's rough terrain, despite the fact his Nightrod could handle anything. "Nngh! Agh! I hate this place!" He snarled.

From off to the side, several shinigami were watching Ryuk pull the strange object along.

"HEY! Ryuk, what are you doing?"

"Having a fucking party, what's it look like?" He snarled.

The other shinigamis had stopped their gambling to watch Ryuk and this weird object from the human realm being dragged through the sandy ground. "What's is it?"

"It's…" He huffed. "My…Newest way of trying to stay active and not look lazy. I'd rather look insane than lazy any day." He explained as best as he could while trying to keep a straight face without getting angry at his bike.

"Well, where'd you get it?"

"Where's it look like? The Spirit Court gave me a gift in compensation for having that surveyor around." HE answered.

The others looked at each other funny before Ryuk dropped down onto the ground and snarled at the bike and had suddenly hopped onto it and revving the engine. "Now, I know why I hate it here! There's no roads for me to drive on."

Without even bothering to care what he ran over, Ryuk turned the bike in the direction of the other shinigamis an blazed between them on the vehicle. "See ya later!" He cackled, the bike leaving a wake of sand and dust behind. _'I've got to get this down to Japan in the Kanto region before Keegan gets there. Otherwise I'll be in big trouble.' _Several sparks flew from behind him and he and the motorcycle were suddenly gone just like that.

"…What the hell was that all about?"

"I think Ryuk's lost his mind."

"Yeah…I think so too."

--

He landed the bike down kind of hard on the grass in a nearby park where nobody was at on this rainy day. He couldn't help but check the vehicle over to make sure no damage was done. He was lucky, Harley-Davidson built this bike for tough and rough instance. "…I'm here." He said, not believing it. "I'm coming Keegan." He said, turning into his human form and shoving the helmet on his head with a growl.

--

"How long until her flight lands?" Gevanni asked, looking at his watch while he sat with Near at a small fast food eatery inside the terminal. Miss Lidner and Lester were with him as well. Though Lester was only doing the driving this time. Gevanni had his badge and gun all ready in case things got hasty, but of course he was an officer of the law, he had to be.

Near wasn't eating, but he had a soda just because he didn't want to look like he was just sitting and doing nothing.

"I received her text message not too long ago. Her flight should be here at anytime." Miss Lidner said, looking down at her phone before another message showed up that said clearly:

'_I'm here.'_

That was the signal, Gevanni stood up and ushered Near along to the terminal in which Keegan was getting off at. "Now, Miss Phelps is clearly aware of the plan we've gone over. She's willing to be bait in this situation. Remember, if she tells us not to interfere or makes any sort of decision without consulting us, I'm sure it will be for our own safety."

"She's so brave. How can she hold her ground so firmly when she'll be facing death itself?" Miss Lidner asked with worry.

"…It must be a gift." Gevanni said. "Only some people are born with certain resolve for situations like this." He informed.

They saw her then as she rolled her luggage down the ramp and up towards them. Gevanni casually took it from her, but Keegan pulled it back. "Thanks, I can handle it. It's just for a couple days stay."

Miss Lidner looked from one side to the next. "Where's your boyfriend?"

"He's coming. He'll meet up with me later. He came before I did. He said he'd always wanted to see Japan." She lied, of course it seemed to work. They'd never really know that "Roy" was really a shinigami named Ryuk.

"Very good. Now, Miss Phelps…if I could. We all ready have Mr. Mikami's Death Note in our possession. I was wondering, if it were possible if we would be allowed to see the notebook of Life." Near inquired curiously.

Keegan gave him reluctant silence. "This shall be between only us, correct?"

Near nodded. "Of course."

"Then, no." She informed. "I'd love to but…it was a gift and I'd prefer if it were kept secret. I will assure you though, it's here with me." Keegan explained. "I'm sorry I can't show it to you."

"Perhaps it is better this way. Thank you for your response and bringing it with you. Now, this is where we'll be going. Would you like to check into your hotel first?"

Keegan nodded. "Yes, would you mind giving me a lift there? I'm a little jet lagged and would like to sleep before the events that go down tomorrow."

"Of course." Near glanced at Gevanni who nodded and led them out of the terminal to where he had parked the car. Keegan's luggage was placed in the back and she got in beside Miss Lidner and Near.

"All right, so tell me about where we're meeting."

--

Checking into the hotel was no problem; Keegan was given a decent amount of Yen to use for her room and any other services she'd need while there. She was given Gevanni's cell phone number in case of an emergency and she all ready had Miss Lidner's number in her cell phone from text messaging.

"We'll call you in the morning." Near informed her. "For now, you're probably very tired and should get some rest."

Keegan nodded. "I will, thank you." She shook hands with Gevanni in thanks and gave a polite nod to Miss Lidner. "I'll have my phone on so it'll be easy for me to hear it if I'm asleep. The volume's all the way up."

"It will have to be, you might sleep late." Gevanni chuckled.

"Agent N." Keegan said to Near suddenly. "This is it, isn't it?" She asked him.

"This is the final stand, Miss Phelps. Yes." Near answered. "It will be hard and dangerous. You are certain you still want to go through with this? You may turn back at any time."

She stood there in the lobby in silence, a serious look on her face before Keegan looked up at Near and said confidently. "No. I've come too far just to turn back now out of fear and cowardice. That's something…only Kira would do." She whispered. "And I am NOT Kira." She said defiantly.

"We'll be in contact." Gevanni told her. "For now, we'll see you in the morning."

--

It had taken him a while to try and locate the exact direction Keegan may have been in. At first he thought that he wouldn't find her until he felt the presence of the Life Script nearby and saw the car it was coming from. The SPK must have picked her up like they said they would. At least she was with people she was familiar with; they were assuring her safety of getting there. He was pleased about that, now to see about where they were going. They weren't going to meet with Light yet. It was too soon; it would probably be tomorrow morning before she left. He decided it was best to just keep following them on the motorcycle and park it in the hotel garage.

--

As the SPK were walking out of the building, Ryuk pulled off his bike helmet to stare at them with a frown. "Oh, hey. You're those cops my girlfriend was telling me about a while back. You were spying on us before." He said, glancing at Miss Lidner. _'Girlfriend. I said girlfriend.'_

"Yes, we are. We were just in the area doing more important work, we're doing work internationally as well." Gevanni explained.

From where Near was standing, he noticed something off about this man, this boyfriend, of Miss Phelps' and his brow cocked suspiciously. He gave off an odd aura and the Death Note in his possession suddenly revealed something entirely different.

"Hm." He said, with a small smirk. "Well, you must be Miss Phelps' unique new boyfriend…Mr. Shinigami."

The other members were caught off guard. "What?" Gevanni whispered.

"I'm able to see him as his real self because of Mikami's notebook in my possession. Now, as Miss Phelps' so-called 'boyfriend', would you like to elaborate what you're doing here?"

Ryuk of course hadn't expected to be seen so soon by the kid, but he wasn't too surprised seeing as how Near was a child prodigy in a sense. "Heh. What's it look like, I'm here to meet Keegan." He told him. "I'm here to ensure her safety. We're good friends if you hadn't noticed"

"A shinigami protecting a human? Huh. So, does that mean you're the 'divine intervention' Miss Phelps was talking about?" Near said, not at all disturbed by the fact that he was talking to a shinigami. It seemed so normal considering the events and the Death Note factor.

Ryuk snorted. "I'm anything _but_ divine, so I guess you could say that." He shrugged. "She get here okay?"

"She's jet-lagged, but I'm sure after she sleeps it off she'll be fine." Near informed. "Are you hear to join her?"

"…I told her I would get here sooner. Wish I'd been there to meet her at the airport." He sighed. "Little disappointed in my timing, I think my bike suffered during its landing."

"Landing?" Miss Lidner asked.

"…It's not important. I'm here, that's all that matters." He told her, "Now if ya move, I'd like to get inside."

Gevanni stepped in front of him. "…Are you here to help or to do harm?"

The SPK officer was met with a shrewd yell from Keegan suddenly. "HEY! Don't harass my boyfriend, Mr. Gevanni, or you can forget my help."

"Well put." Near chuckled. "She's all yours. I imagine your in good hands, Miss Phelps?" He turned his head to look back at a grumpy Keegan at the door waiting for Ryuk.

"…Can you see him?" She asked Near,

He nodded. "Yes, but it seems as though he's more concerned for your sake then his own. You two are close."

"I told you, he's my boyfriend." Keegan insisted. "Now if you don't mind, I'd like to check him in with me."

Gevanni of course wasn't too keen on the idea, but Near suddenly ordered: "Gevanni, let's go. She'll be fine. I'm sure of it."

Ryuk gave Gevanni a cold stare before he strode over to Keegan and was suddenly met with a crushing hug. "…Okay! So I wasn't all right on the flight without you! I'm sorry."

"How do you think I felt having to drag my bike through the shinigami realm and then transport it here to get to you?" Ryuk asked, putting an arm around her with a groan of exasperation. "You have no idea what it was like to play 'let's ask Ryuk 40 questions' in the Shinigami Realm with my bike."

"You did what?" Keegan asked with a displeased tone.

"Tell ya later. Let's get you upstairs." They went back inside and he grabbed ahold of her luggage before Keegan paid for the room and they went up in the elevator to the 11th floor.

"Hey…" Ryuk said suggestively raising his brows, as they were in the elevator alone. "Maybe we-"

"…No. We're NOT making out in an elevator, Ryuk."

--

For the time being, Keegan was too tired to go out and get something to eat for herself and there was a problem because she didn't speak Japanese. So, Ryuk had to handle that for her. She gave him money and he came back with food, lots of it. Judging by her attitude and the growl of her stomach every 20 minutes, Ryuk decided it would be best to make sure she was well fed before she went to sleep.

He of course was used to seeing how Japanese food was cooked in the human society of Japan because he for one was from here and he lived with Light for a good while when he was still in high school. Mostly he just ordered some take out or things that Keegan might have liked and brought them back to her.

There wasn't much left after Keegan was through. After being on the flight for over a good few hours, she was starving and was happy to get any food in her system. The only thing she didn't like was the tempura. He'd make of note of that in his head just in case he got her something to eat next time. They would be in Japan for a couple days at least.

For now, Keegan was just content to change the channels on her t.v, drowsy and drifting off. She had it to some news channel before nodding into slumber and curling up under the sheets of the bed she went to sleep.

Ryuk of course, had no time to sleep. It was hard enough to think of the events for tomorrow, with Keegan sleeping and everything. He wondered how much longer this could go on for? Would it turn out good or would it turn out bad?

"You don't want me going with you…but I'll go anyways. At least to sit back and watch. I can't let you go against him alone." Ryuk said, sitting beside her on the bed.

"Remember? I'm on YOUR side. Not his."

--

Keegan couldn't help but stare out the tinted windows at the rainy day with a kind of concerned look on her face. The entire ride, she hardly said anything to Near or Miss Lidner. When all of the sudden-

"Miss Phelps," Near interrupted her from her thoughts. "Is everything all right?"

"Hm?" Keegan turned her attention to him casually. "Oh. Yeah. I guess. I'm just a little unsure in my mind. What I mean is, my mind is devoid of emotion. I don't know what to feel about this. All I know is, I have to stop him. I have to put an end to Kira. Even if it means harm to me." She explained to him. "You know, the stupid thing is. This all started because he messed up my report I was doing for a journalism class." She laughed at herself. "I…I can't even begin to think how I could have gotten this far without help behind me."

"The shinigami, you mean?" Near said with a hinting smile.

Keegan frowned at him. "Of course, I mean him. He's been with me from the beginning since this all started. I can't just take all the credit for this when he's done so much for me. He's been such a good friend to me. Most times, to me, even more than a friend." She sighed. "I can't believe that it's finally come down to the wire."

"Do you believe you'll win?" Near asked her, twirling that infamous lock of hair by his ear through his fingers.

"…I do, but at the same time I can't help but think they'll be casualties." She shrugged. "Then again…if there are, well, we'll have to see."

"Well put. Now, Miss Phelps. When we get inside, Gevanni will place you in a hiding place so that nobody will see you. Specifically inside of one of those empty crates in the warehouse. Do you understand?"

Keegan was humored by the thought. "Ah, I see. You're truly putting, Schrodinger's Cat inside Pandora's Box." She chuckled. "Ah, Agent N. I appreciate the joke, but…seriously? A box?"

"…It's the only way to assure your safety, Miss Phelps. Your identity as Kuro must be protect." Near nodded.

"So be it, Kira will open the box."

--

His Nightrod blazed along the wet roads carefully, Ryuk didn't want any damage coming to the bike after dropping it from the shinigami realm almost.

He couldn't believe this was it. He was fighting back against the very man he had allowed use of his Death Note. It was fun, but at the same time he was worried about Keegan. Never had Ryuk imagined that he would feel such loyalty to anyone; a human nonetheless.

"...You've got to win." He said.

--

The ride there was comforting, because Light knew that he was one step ahead (or so he thought). Mikami's part in this would all play out and Kira's New World would continue its course. As he sat in the back of the vehicle, he could see out into the rainy scenery and how it so quaintly played out on this day.

'_So, Kuro has decided to meet us on a special occasion involving evidence towards Kira. Huh. Very well then, we'll see about this so-called 'Giver of Life'. We'll see who you really are. Now, everything will end. I'll finally see Kuro's true identity and be able to kill him. What a fool. How careless of Kuro to think of coming out of hiding to face me.' _

It all seemed so perfect. _'No, everything won't really end. It will just begin today. Heh heh. Kira's perfect world. Those who know of the Notebooks' will die.' _He leaned back in his seat, content with his work. _'It's all a matter of time.'_

--

After the car parked at the location, Aizawa got out, he was stiff and cautious when he went inside the warehouse to find the SPK where they were.

They had Keegan hiding behind a large stack of boxes, seated behind them, concealed from anyone's sight at the moment before Aizawa came. "

Before Near could speak, a computerized voice spoke: "_Mr. Aizawa, if you have any sudden doubts, you are free to turn back at any time. Inform Agent L, I am here."_

Kuro. Aizawa couldn't help but almost feel relieved. "You came." He said. "Where are you?"

"We cannot discuss that Mr. Aizawa." Near said, a mask safely adorned over his face.

"_I won't disclose my location yet. For now, please inform the other Task Force agents I am here. Also…Tell Mr. Matsuda, he's safe."_

Aizawa nodded, stepping outside and back towards the open car door. "Near's in there, no doubt about it. Kuro is too. Though Kuro's identity has yet to be revealed. It's for safety precautions I assume."

"Good, then let's go." Light said, moving to get out of the vehicle.

--

They entered the warehouse to meet with the SPK members, and found them and what must have been Near sitting on the floor with a bunch of little dolls in front of him it looked like, including a black cat figure.

The rain pounded against the windows outside, and Keegan found it a little difficult to listen in on the conversation through the box.

"Kuro said he was coming, did he not?" Matsuda asked, looking around with worry. "Where is Kuro? I can't agree to this because I can't see Near's face because he's wearing a mask. How are we supposed to know whether he's Kira or not?"

"_All in due time, Mr. Matsuda."_ Kuro said suddenly, of course from where, nobody but Near and the other SPK members could pinpoint.

"Kuro…" Light said, in whispered awe.

"The mask if just a precaution. I imagine Kira is watching s right now he probably knows everyone's face in this room except mine. Unbeknownst to him that Kuro is just a step ahead as usual probably." Near chuckled. "So, even if Kira wrote down their names, it wouldn't matter. Kuro would probably jump in to save us at the last second. Then again, that's why Kuro's location isn't going to be disclosed. With Kuro exposed, who will stop Kira then."

'_Exactly_.' Light thought.

"We'll wait for about a half-hour to see if anything happens." Near informed

'_A half-hour?' _Keegan thought. _'Oh no…what if I have to pee by then?'_ No. She couldn't think about that. Focus on Kira. Going to he bathroom won't be as important. Right now she could just picture Mr. Yagami's face, Ryuk had shown her his picture on the website, and how angry he must be knowing she wasn't there with the SPK. Out there at least.

"_If anything does happen though, I shall know. And Kira will know the true extent of my wrath." _Kuro warned.

"W-Wait?! We're just going to wait? Wait to see if we do or don't die?" Matsuda exclaimed.

"_Mr. Matsuda…Fear not. I will protect you. All of you."_ Kuro's voice assured. _"Even you, Mr. Yagami."_

The last part was reluctant, Light could sense it because he knew that Kuro had an absolute hate for him, Kuro knew who he was and that was why Kuro couldn't live.

'_It's a good idea. If Light really is Kira, it's a good idea to see if it happens.' _Aizawa thought with relief while staring at the back of Light's head. _'We aren't of any use to him anymore, so it doesn't matter what happens to us.'_

_--_

Time passed, The Kira figurine and the Kuro-Cat chess piece were facing each other on the floor along with the SPK dolls behind it.

Everyone was sweating, it was slightly humid inside the warehouse and Matsuda was feeling stress from it.

Light of course couldn't help but think this whole ordeal was hysterical on the inside. Near was just wasting time, and once Mikami had everyone out of the way, the Task Force could search for Kuro, and then…Light would kill Kuro.

"Nothing's happen. Kira must not be here." Matsuda said, looking up from his watch.

"Very well, I'll take off my mask." Near removed the fake L mask and gave Light a small smile as if to say: 'Hello, Kira.'

Light didn't seem amused by the cutesy little façade and he gave Near a serious look.

"Are you still waiting for someone?" Light asked.

"Heh. Wait. Exactly. I'm waiting."

"_As am I."_ Kuro stated, seriously doubting Light's question as mere curiosity. Mr. Mikami would come; Agent N had said he would.

"Kuro is not the completion of our circle, there is another." Near informed, pushing the Kuro-Cat chess piece closer to the Kira piece. "He'll be here in a little while. This building is sealed and you can't see inside without opening that door." He directed their attention towards the bright red door they had come in through.

"So, who IS coming?" Matsuda asked.

"_Kira's Right-Hand. As I like to call: His bitch-boy." _Kuro chuckled.

Light mentally scowled at Kuro mocking of Mikami. _'Don't get cocky yet.'_

"A third person will come with the notebook and kill us?!" Matusuda seemed afraid now.

"_Even if that is the case…Not even the Right-Hand can defeat me. I promised protection. I will enforce it." _Matsuda shouldn't have been worried though because their names were written in the Life Script. Even the SPK members. Except Near's. Keegan didn't know his name. She couldn't do that, which presented a problem.

"So we have to sit back and watch?!" Ide Shouted.

"…_I am the Giver of Life. I will NOT allow it to happen."_ Kuro said forebodingly.

"We'll pretend we don't notice the door opening. So please, ignore it. For Kuro's sake."

There was suddenly a very loud scraping noise and the door slid open just a bit. Light of course was seemingly pleased. Mikami was reading their names with the shinigami eyes at this precise moment and killing them with the Death Note.

Of course…even if Mikami had written them in the real Death Note, the Life Script would have caused the Death Note to reject the names right away since those names were all ready protected in the Life Script. Keegan heard a faint noise and at that very moment Kuro's voice spoke again.

"_Right-Hand of Kira, show yourself. I know you are Here."_

--

At the sound of Kuro's mocking tone of voice, Mikami's victory grin didn't last for long and at that moment he knew, something was wrong. "No…You couldn't be. Not here."

"_Now, Right-Hand. Know my wrath with your 'God'."_

_--_

"We'll seize the notebook when he looks in here to see if we are dead, After all. The notebook was replaced and thus we will not die." Near informed. "Whose name is not in the notebook is Kira, then again even if who is Kira denies it…Kuro has all the evidence. Without a doubt."

"How can you say that?!" Ide snapped. "We could still die!"

"_Must I repeat myself again? Have you so little faith in me?"_ Kuro asked. _"I will protect you."_

There was silence before Aizawa spoke. "We're all afraid. Please understand our distrust."

"_I understand, Mr. Aizawa, that fear is a humane emotion. If we as people, do not feel fear than we are not human. I will let this little slip of faith by this time. Please, trust me."_

Light squinted slightly, he was trying to figure out still where that voice was coming from because it seemed as though it was coming from all around. _'They've hidden Kuro to protect Kuro's identity. Damn it. Mikami won't be able to kill Kuro if he can't find where Kuro is.'_

Then again…they would still all die. Light of course had planned ahead. _'Near, you fool. I had a prepared fake note for Mikami all ready. So the notebook that he's writing in now…'_

"Whoever Is outside…are you done writing down the names?"

"_You're stalling…Mr. Right-Hand."_ Kuro spoke after Light did. _"Come inside, or I'll make sure you regret it."_

Ha! What an idiot! In coming out-No. Kuro couldn't come out so how would…Light had to hold back any laughter that might surface.

"I am finished." Mikami answered.

"_Yes, you are. Even so…You know what today is, Mr. Right-Hand." _Kuro sneered. _"Come inside."_

'_In 40 seconds, everyone will die.' _Light inwardly chuckled. _'I highly doubt Near gave his names to Kuro is they were here. He would suspect whoever if Kuro as Kira. So the precaution to not give the names was foolish.'_

"…_Mr. L, why don't you tell everyone why you asked him that question so confidently?" _Kuro asked.

"Yes, L. Why don't you?" Near said in agreement to Kuro's question.

"Hm. Maybe he's an honest guy, or maybe he has some room to spare." Light shrugged, seemingly nonchalant. "Your plot may have been seen through."

"_If so…how do you know that, Mr. L? I suggest you think harder about this situation. I'M here, Mr. Right-Hand to Kira is out there and even if he does write down the names…How can he not expect me to save them?"_

"We might be done for then." Matsuda whispered.

"Mr. Mikami Teru, why don't you come inside? I'm sure you would like to get acquainted with Kuro, since we know you're taking over Kira's Judgments now."

"…_Yes Mr. Mikami. If you wrote down their names, you have nothing to fear. For I would come out and get their names to save them, thus exposing myself, and you would kill me. Of course, I wouldn't be a coward to come out and save everyone in this room from you. For is I die…I will be avenged."_ Kuro warned. _"So come out, come out whever you areeeee."_

"Come inside, Mikami Teru." Light said, seemingly pleased with this outcome. _'So Kuro, you'd perform the ultimate sacrifice…very well. You'll die in vain trying to destroy me.'_

--

He grabbed the door and slowly forced it open before grinning at Light.

"How long has it been since you've written the first person's name?" Light asked.

Mikami held up his wristwatch to his face and looked down at it, counting down until time was up.

"Near, it's my win." Light said with a maniacal grin.

Matsuda had ducked his head while waiting for death to come and Aizawa squinted his eyes shut. Matsuda lifted his head up in amazement. "H-Hey…we're…we're still alive." He looked down at his hands.

Light looked mortified. _'No. No. No. NO! NO! KURO! KURO! KURO! DAMN YOU DAMN YOU!' _He thought.

Mikami looked just as confused. How could this have been? If Kuro had saved them…wouldn't the Death Note be spewing Ink all over the place? What if…the notebook had been a fake? Oh no.

"_See. Faith."_ Kuro chuckled.

"I told you we wouldn't die." Near said as matter of fact.

"Wh-Why won't they die!? Did Kuro save you?!" Mikami snapped.

Kuro couldn't have, otherwise the Death Note would have rejected the names Mikami placed in it. But…no, no, no. Light denied it. He hadn't been beaten yet.

"GOD! I did everything you instructed!" Mikami exclaimed.

"Gevanni, Lester, hold Mr. Mikami!" Near ordered.

The SPK agents moved in as instructed and grabbed Mikami, holding him in place and handcuffing him. "Gevanni, bring me the notebook."

"_Do you see the names Mr. Yagami?" _Kuro asked. _"Do you see?"_

"Yours isn't there." Near said, obviously knowing he had his man. Even without Keegan telling him, he had known from the beginning. Of course it had helped that he wasn't the only one to know. "Also, the fact that Mr. Mikami called you 'God'…proves it."

Keegan heard silence before she listened to Light freak out suddenly.

Light pointed a finger accusingly at Near. "IT'S A TRAP! THIS WHOLE THING IS A SETUP IN ORDER TO FRAME ME!"

Frame him? Hardly, nobody had framed him. Now, he knew he had been caught. Keegan certainly was glad that she hadn't been the one to call him out on it but now that he was freaking out like this, there was no reason to hide anymore. She pushed the fake door on the box open and crawled out, relieved to feel the cool air on her skin. _'Ooh it was hot in there.'_

"NOBODY'S DEAD BECAUSE THE NAMES WERE IN THE NOTEBOOK! ISN'T THAT STRANGE?! That proves it's a trap!"

His voice was loud, frantic and Keegan swore she heard him mumbling curses in Japanese before she hid the Life Script under her sweatshirt. It seemed suitable for this rainy day too. It was chilly outside, but hot in the warehouse.

"I told you…I modified the notebook so we wouldn't die." Near explained.

"Unbelievable…" Light sneered. "I…I don't even know this man." He pointed at Mikami.

--

The horror. His god had disowned him. "Ahhhh…AAAH!!" Mikami shouted in denial. "NOO!" He cried. "NO! GOD! I did everything you asked me to!"

"This man is no God!"

--

Authoress Note: So…the true battle will begin. I hope everyone liked this chapter. We're coming down to the final Life Script chapter folks. So please look out for what will happen.

--


	27. Kira vs Kuro

Authoress Note: I'd like to thank everyone who has read The Life Script and I do hope you enjoyed reading the story. Yes guys, we're at that final chapter. We're at the climax of the story and I'm sad to say that this is the end. It's been great writing this out. You know, when I first started this story it started out as an idea, then when I posted it up and saw how many people took interest into the idea, I decided to turn it into a fanfiction. I cannot imagine a better fanfiction than this. I really do have to thank each and every one of my reviewers every time because it's not always just the author or authoress who makes the story, it all revolves around the reviewers as well. It all depends on what the reviewers want to see in a story though. I'm truly grateful and this is probably the only fanfiction I've written where I can say that I don't feel disappointed in it. I honestly and glad to have written this fanfiction with the idea of the Life Script because if you start something with an idea, it's like a tiny seed and it takes time and effort to grow but you realize that once it all pays off you feel so sad because it's all grown up.

Gee guys, I do thank you so much. It's really been an honor writing this for you guys and your entertainment. Thank you so much for sticking with the story through and through. You were there with the speedy reviews to the speedy chapter, you even waiting patiently for the later chapters that were to come…I…I do mean it when I say, thank you. You're probably the best bunch of reviewers on this site and I appreciate all your patience, reviews, and enjoyment of the story. I'm sure you reviewers all know who you are so once again, thanks.

--

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps) and others, belong to me. Thanks._

--

"Mr. Yagami," Came a voice that Light had never heard before, until Keegan stepped out from behind a stack of warehouse boxes. "Save your words." She said coldly.

"What is this?!" Light snapped. "Just who are you supposed to be?"

Keegan's gaze darkened and she grit her teeth before grinning at him cunningly. _"You're worst nightmare."_

Just what was Near playing at? Had Near planned something else? Why wasn't Kuro taunting him anymore unless...

Something snapped in Light at that moment when this suspicious young woman answered him. It seemed so out of place that this person would dare speak down to him like…

Then he knew. It didn't take a genius to figure it out when he saw the silvery moon-shaped medallion with the black cat.

"You…" He grit his teeth.

'_Oh, busted.' _Keegan thought to herself. Before anything else could be said she bolted as a distraction to keep him from hurting anyone in the room. All she could think about now was keeping the very people in this place safe. "COME GET ME KIRA!" She shouted, taunting him.

"COME FACE ME LIKE THE COWARD YOU ARE!"

Light immediately took off after her and the chase was on. "KUUUUUROOOOOO!"

--

So this was Kuro? An unknown American girl? She was probably about the same age as Misa, if not a little older. That didn't matter though, the fact was that she had tormented him and prevented his perfect world from being created. Now it was her time to pay. Light pursued her like a wild animal after prey.

Kuro? This girl? A young woman. Aizawa and Matsuda were at a loss of words.

Only when she egged Light on to come after her, did Matsuda become more alert. "We should help her! Don't let him go after her!"

"Wait! She's leading him on, it's a front. The chase." Aizawa held Matsuda back. "Isn't it Near?"

"Correct, she's declared herself bait in order to get more of a confession out of Mr. Yagami." Near informed, turning his head in the direction of the chase.

"The box has been opened." Gevanni stated.

"The cat is running from Pandora's broom." Near chuckled.

--

The adrenaline pumped through his veins wildly as he watched his prey stumble and run for her life. This was the great and powerful Kuro? This woman had dared to mock him and make a fool out of Kira's New World? Now when Light had originally told Kuro that he was going to pay, he had never imagined that Kuro, 'he', was a she. It was going to turn ugly, it didn't matter that everyone now knew he was Kira. Light was going to make this girl pay for everything she pad put him through. He could see it now, being a historic figure in the world. All the while, this girl would only be known as the unnamed contender that had failed in her efforts to stop him.

He kept a close eye on her movements until he saw his precise moment to jump at her, and he grabbed her by the back of her knees. "RAAGH!"

--

Being chased through a warehouse was terrifying. At this moment she didn't know whether to be more afraid of the thought of Joe chasing her down if he was not in jail or this. Keegan felt her nerves standing on end as her feet splashed through the puddles. She could hear the footfalls behind her advancing quickly. Light was in hot pursuit while she ran as fast as her legs would carry and suddenly she was brought down to the ground.

Light had dove forward and grabbed her by the legs, tackling her to the floor.

"I'LL KILL YOU!" Light cried, turning her over to look for the fear in her eyes.

His response was being punched in the face by Keegan. She wasn't going to go down without a brutal fight.

Light had temporarily released her because she had hit him in the jaw and it felt like she had hit it out of place.

Keegan was running again before Light got right back up and went in pursuit again. This time he ambushed her from the front by hiding behind another set of warehouse boxes and tackled her to the floor.

"AGH!"

"You're going to pay for everything you've done to me..." Light hissed at her, grabbing her by the collar of her shirt.

--

'_No.'_ Matsuda thought as he watched the chase unfold. "Light, stop!"

'_He'll kill her!'_ Aizawa screamed in his head, getting ready to draw his gun.

The Task Force tried to move in to stop Light. Only when they arrived on the scene, Keegan and Light were ensuing in a fistfight to what could have been the death. Her nose was bloody and Light had a bruised jaw. She was biting, kicking, and screaming at him. Light in turn was trying to pry Keegan into a headlock, almost choking her.

"YOU BITCH!" He screamed.

Keegan kicked him in the crotch without warning, and got up again to stumble away from him. Her breathing was heavy and she could felt aches and pain in her body.

Light got up again and he ran at her, this time Keegan met him at full force and locked her arm around his neck and brought him to the ground and started hitting him in the face once more.

--

"Light!" Aizawa snarled, gettingr eady to step in.

"Stop." Near ordered, "This is their battle. Not ours. Good versus Evil. Yin versus Yang, Kira versus Kuro."

"But Light could kill her at anytime!" Matsuda exclaimed. "I can't sit by and watch!"

"We'll have to wait and see. He can't get at any piece of the notebook he may have right now. He wants to kill her with his bare hands. He knows she's played games with him long enough."

--

Light pulled Keegan into a headlock, trying to suffocate her.

Keegan thrashed violently, biting Light's arm.

"GAH!" He exclaimed and punched her in the stomach, temporarily decommissioning Keegan for several seconds before he wrenched her up by the collar of her shirt. "YOU!!! You who would dare to mock me and attempt to stop my power! I AM GOD! _I AM GOD!_ You are nothing compared to me! What gives you the right to think you can put the world back the way it was when I had it so perfect?!"

Keegan spit in his face. "Nothing is perfect."

He slapped her after she spit at him, and wiped his face.

"Some foolish little American GIRL who calls herself the Giver of Life! Can you save yourself now!? Can you save your life?! Well, it won't matter. It doesn't prevent me from killing you with my bare hands if I can't kill you with the Death Note."

Keegan gripped her hand suddenly onto his wrist. "…You would damn this world if I continued to let you be Kira. It doesn't matter how many criminals you kill, how many allies you kill that know you are Kira, or how many people who you hate because they do bad things. The world cannot be perfect Mr. Yagami. God wouldn't have made it that way. I may not have much faith in him or any ethereal entity out there…but I know that God wouldn't want the world in order…because he didn't make human beings without free will. I just did as he made me as. With free will…the right to choose. And I choose to right your wrongs and save people from you. _You. Are. Not. God._"

"YOU RUINED ME!" He screamed.

"You're a morally disturbed man!" She croaked.

"A spoiled brat who was raised in a high-roller society where daddy gave you everything. You jumped at the chance as soon as you figured out what a Death Note could do. You shot through it like you were a damn cheetah, while I took my time and slithered in like a snake. Sinking my fangs slowly into your very sanity until the poison finally got to you. Now, you are exposed for whom you really are: a voracious parasite feeding off the fear of society of those who 'fear' Kira. KIRA whom is nothing more than a crazy man that uses a notebook to kill people. I've known who you were all along."

"How so?" Light wrenched her close and hissed at her. "You couldn't have. Unless Near told you and you've known him all along too."

Keegan's lip was bleeding, her body quivering before she smiled softly. "Agent N didn't tell me. I'll never tell you who told me…because…I love him."

"Him?" Near's brow cocked. "Who do you mean, Miss Phelps?" He was cloaking the fact that Keegan was talking about Mr. Shinigami. She was protecting him too probably.

"I'll never tell. You won't make me." Keegan chuckled.

"Well, it must be somebody you love very deeply. I can't wait to see the misery they'll suffer when they watch you die." Light pulled out his handgun and pointed it at her. "This is the end Miss Kuro. I can assure you, you won't get out of here alice. Though I may go to prison, you can never right my wrongs again and I'll go down as a legend, while you'll just go down as 'the one who tried to stop Kira'. Have you any last words?"

--

When Ryuk saw Keegan reveal herself to Light he watched her call Kira out. "Atta Girl."

_'Oh she looks so great, so defiant standing there to face Death once again, this time to save the world.' _She was just so full of life, so full of a passion that screamed righteousness all over. "Damn. I think now I know why I love you so much." He grumbled to himself before he heard

Until...Light took off after her. She was scared, he could see it in her eyes as she ran, yet she was risking her life to stop Light. She really was some human. He felt all right until Light pointed his gun at her face.

Ryuk gnashed his teeth in vengeance as he watched the scene unfold from outside before he clenched the handles of his motorcycle in a death grip, rain soaking his mortal facade and he revved the engine violently several times as a signal to Keegan. "I'm coming."

--

An engine revved from outside somewhere and suddenly a black blur burst through the red door of the warehouse to come zooming in on the bike. The other members of the SPK and Task Force has to step back as the bike spun around in a circle leaving a donut-like skid mark in the middle of the floor before the rider turned his attention to Light holding Keegan in her place as she continued to struggle.

"He's here…" She whispered.

Light jerked his head around to take a look at this mysterious stranger garbed in dark wear on the expensive looking motorcycle.

The engine revved and the bike slowly inched murderously towards Light.

"Ryuk!" Keegan shouted, stumbling to her feet. "Don't do it!"

"What? …Ryuk?!" Somewhere in his gut, Light just got that feeling something was wrong. But could anyone else see that the bike was empty or…wait. They were all staring at the bike so…was that really Ryuk? It couldn't have been…

"WHO IS THAT?!" Aizawa shouted, Gevanni had a tight hold on the mortified Mikami who had tried to run towards Light to help aid him in Keegan's demise.

"Ah, Mr. Shinigami, He was waiting…" Near murmured in interest, obviously being able to see Ryuk's true form because he was hiding Mikami's Death Note. "He's been protecting Miss Phelps' identity. That's why Light could never figure out who she was. Mr. Shinigami refused to tell him."

The engine revved and the bike soared forwards before it skidded to a halt and Ryuk leapt off the bike back in his shinigami form to snag Light by the throat. The people whom had seen his human form, they couldn't see him now because he had disappeared and was only visible to those who could see him. To everyone else, Light was floating in midair by his throat.

"Hey! Wh-Where'd he go?" Matsuda said with great confusion.

"It's the shinigami. He's reverted back to his original state in order to get at Light Yagami." Near explained.

Ryuk's right hand was in a wrought iron grip on Light's throat. His gaze murderous and his teeth gnashing hungrily with vengeance. "Remember when I told you…I wasn't on your side, Light? Well, it didn't mean that I wasn't on somebody else's. You should have known that all along."

Light couldn't breathe right; Ryuk was trying to kill him. "Ryuk…" He coughed out. "It doesn't matter…you write my name in the notebook, and you'll die too. For saving her life when her time's run out."

"…That's not what her lifespan says." Ryuk grinned; quite pleased if one might add when he looked over at Keegan.

She was staring at Ryuk from the floor before she stumbled to her feet. "Ryuk…"

"Save it, I've been waiting to get my hands on Light for some time Keegan. He's gonna pay for what he did to you 10 fold."

Light felt his heart stop beating momentarily. From Ryuk's tone, he meant business. Ryuk wasn't just playing games anymore, he was rightly defending Miss Phelps, Kuro, as her personal bodyguard-No. As if she meant something to him.

"…Why? What does she mean to you Ryuk? How could you possibly sink to Rem's level? You yourself said it was stupid for shinigamis to love."

"Hard to say, Keegan's smart. I respect her. She takes care of me, she's been _feeding_ me." The shinigami grinned. He'd never admit to Light though that he did in fact love Keegan in a sense Light would never understand. "Then again…Keegan's not you. So it's hard not to have feelings for her."

"Miss Phelps," Near jumped in at this point. "As your identity as Kuro, how long have you known Mr. Shinigami here?"

She was still in shock after Light had dropped her. Keegan's hand was cupped over her mouth; a bit amazed that Ryuk would even have come to her rescue so vigorously, willing to kill Light (of course Ryuk had said he'd kill Light for her before, but she never thought he would actually do it like this). "Ah…since I first got the Life Script, The Life Giving Notebook. He dropped it by accident." She explained.

"That's what he said about the Death Note!" Light snarled.

"Yeah…but the Life Script was a real accident this time." Ryuk said with a grin before he turned his attention to Keegan. "Hey," he called towards her. "You all right?"

Keegan was wiping blood from her mouth. "Huh? Oh! Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks."

He rattled Light before finally dropping him. "Unlike Light, I got a good deal while sticking around this American girl. When I said she took care of me, she sated my apple cravings when Light wouldn't. I figured it was only fair to turn on the hand that used to feed me and go to a new one instead. In the end though, I found somebody that actually likes having me around for instance."

"It was a paid deal then." Near chuckled. "Clever, Miss Phelps."

"Thank you." Keegan bowed politely, trying to get herself together while she glared at Light. "I cannot say the same for Mr. Yagami. He's man that should have never been born."

Light got to his feet quickly when he regained his breath. "Stupid girl, stupid, stupid girl!" He snarled. "You made me expose myself!"

"You're just repeating things you've all ready said now." Keegan said angrily. "Enough. You've lost."

"You've lost just as much as I have. You've been obstructing justice of the SPK."

"Actually, Miss Phelps hasn't been in our way. She helped lead us to you in a sense. We had no deal or negotiations with her; we only met three times and that was it. We've known she was Kuro all along. Of course, respecting her privacy we decided not to expose her identity and decided it best just to let her lure you out of hiding. Hence she used herself as bait to have you to come here willingly."

"I took a dangerous challenge Mr. Yagami. You and the Task Force wanted to meet me in person so I could tell you that I knew who Kira was. Before arriving here, I contacted them and let them know everything. I merely asked them to help aid in catching you. Now that you're out in the open…it's over." Keegan hissed, "You lose Mister Yagami." Ryuk was standing beside Keegan now as she glowered at Light.

Light watched them, until he found the Life Script Keegan's hands. "You're good to go?" Ryuk asked her.

"Yes." she answered. "Thank you for coming for me." She smiled at him gratefully.

"We've known Light Yagami was Kira for some time now. It just took a lot of hard and dedicated work to catch him. We knew from the beginning, and with Mello's help. It didn't take us long to figure out all roads led to you Light Yagami, Kira…It was Mikami's carelessness that was your down fall also." Near informed, pulling out the Death Note from within his shirt. "We replaced Mikami's Death Note with a fake one, carefully copying down his handwriting and it was all accomplished in one night. It was a joint effort."

"…Forgive me, God." Mikami bowed his head. "I did everything you asked me to."

"I do not know this crazy man…" Light murmured.

At that point Mikami looked horribly shaken at the thought of his God disowning him once more.

"Why don't you just admit it Mr. Yagami? You're Kira. _Kira. Kira. Kira_." Keegan snapped. "You messed up, badly. It's over. Give it up, you can't run anywhere anymore, you're surrounding and I'm pretty sure Ryuk wouldn't mind killing you if he could!"

"I'll do it, if she asks me too. Either way Light, you've got no where to run." Ryuk growled.

Keegan opened the Life Script. "Everything has to die at some point in Life. Every person, every man, every woman, and every living thing: shinigamis included. This book does not grant immortality Mr. Yagami. It restores Life, giving longer life spans than what originally had been planned for them. I brought those criminals back to life to lure you out. Some of those criminals didn't even deserve to die." Keegan would have to admit, in some cases she did feel certain criminals needed to be expelled from the world, but that wasn't up to her.

"Misdemeanors?" She asked, pointing at the notebook on the floor. "Drug dealers? Manslaughter cases? Even reformed criminals?" She scoffed. "You really are crazy." Keegan shook her head at him. "If you have any sense left in your head…you will hand yourself over. You know you've lost."

There was an eerie silence as Light had his back turned to them before he turned around to have his gaze settle on Keegan only. "So have you…"

Her brow quirked and before she knew it, there was an unbearable pain in her side and her hand was covered in blood. Her gaze fell towards the sight of his handgun giving off smoke. At the sight of her blood though, Keegan felt faint and her vision went black. Ryuk caught her before she hit the floor and he snarled.

"KEEGAN! KEEGAN!" he shook her, trying to get her to wake up before anything other type of harm could befall her.

The Life Script was clenched tightly in her hand, in case Light tried to steal it in his mad tirade. There was excruciating pain for several moments before the Life Script glowed brightly.

He pulled the Life Script out of her other hand to find the blood being absorbed into the Life Script while she lay bleeding. Miss Lidner moved quickly to try to stem the flow of the wound but found it pointless when the Life Script was literally putting Keegan's blood back into her body.

"How can it be?" Miss Lidner whispered watching as the notebook healed Keegan. Ryuk opened the notebook to find the last rule:

_Rule # 20: All humans eventually die, __however; should the mortal user and the shinigami in possession of the Life Script share more in the binding contract, the mortal user will die when the shinigami dies._

Keegan could hear muffled noises, while there was the sound of Light proclaiming why he did it, how he did it, and his pride in the fact that he was Kira and that Kuro was going to die.

Keegan could felt the vibrations of gunshots and Light screaming intelligibly at Matsuda because Matsuda had fired. There was more commotion before Light took off and Mikami's screams soon came afterwards as blood covered the floor.

Her eyes fluttered open as she lay there staring up at Ryuk. "…Hi." She said hoarsely.

It was quite a sight to see before the open notebook was closed as Ryuk read over the last rule. "Heh. Stupid notebook came to your rescue." He showed Rule # 20 to her. Keegan looked at it before she weakly sat up. "Ugh. Where's the bullet?" She asked, glancing over at Mikami laying on the floor, dead now.

Gevanni stepped over Mikami's body and held the the bulled out towards her. "It expelled it from your body."

Ryuk was once again "Roy" and the rest of the SPK could see him.

"He's a shinigami, we can only see him as this because of his power." Near explained. "As his shinigami self however only those who have touched the Death Note can see him that way, I presume the same way with the Life Script too?" He asked Keegan.

She nodded. "Yeah, if you don't mind. I'm going to keep the Life Script, Agent N. I'd appreciate it if you didn't take it from me. It's grown quite attached to my emotions." She said looking down at the glowing notebook with a small smile.

"As long as you continue to keep your identity under wraps, Miss Phelps. You're free to use it as you wish." Near advised.

"Thanks." Ryuk pulled Keegan to her feet. "Your secret is safe with us." Aizawa approached her. "Miss Phelps is it?" He asked.

"Yes." Keegan answered, turning towards him. "Keegan Phelps."

"Agent Aizawa of the Task Force. It's nice to finally meet you, Kuro." He said with a smile.

Keegan grinned. "Glad to have been of service."

"Um..." Matsuda nervously stood behind Aizawa before he came to shake her hand as well. "A-Agent Matsuda. Thank you, so much for all of your work. We...we can't thank you enough."

"Ooh. Keegan, I think Matsuda likes you." Ryuk chuckled.

"Sorry, I have a boyfriend." She said sincerely, putting an arm around Ryuk before the shinigami turned his back to her and went to follow Light. "Hey, take this thing outside. I got one more thing to do." He said handing his bike helmet to her, taking out his Death Note.

"Wait! Where are you going? Don't you do that Ryuk! You'll-"

"Hey. You're life's not in any danger. So it won't affect me." Ryuk assured. "I'll be right back." He promised.

--

The run was agonizingly painful. Light was bleeding from almost everywhere and he started to feel the strain of his wounds. Damn Matsuda, he had to go crazy and proclaim that Souchiro Yagami's efforts were in vain. He spat blood up and continued to stumble along, not really having anywhere else to go until he suddenly met face to face with Ryuk in his human form.

"…Gehh…Ryuk…" He groaned. "Wh-What do you want? Come to get me back this time?"

Ryuk answered by holding up his Death Note. "You got sloppy Light."

"You sunk to a level you said you'd never go to." Light mocked him. "You'll die just like Rem some day Ryuk."

"Actually…I'm going to live a very long life Light." Ryuk said smugly. "Since you can't hurt Keegan anymore…I won't die any time soon. You better keep running if you don't want them to catch you." He said, giving wise council to Light before things got ugly and Matsuda caught up to shoot at him again. "I suggest you keep running unless you want Matsuda to pump you full of lead when he finds you."

There wasn't much else Light could say to him except run away, of course Ryuk knew he wouldn't get too far. "It's time." He said. Turning back into his shinigami form and flew up to the little water tower on top of the warehouse. Witht he sun setting, Ryuk opened his Death Note.

"Well Light…it's been fun. I think I had more fun with Keegan though. It's a shame though because…Keegan wasn't the one being hunted, you were." He took out his trusty pen and wrote down Light's name.

--

His breath was getting heavier to hold while he was making his escape. The whole time, he couldn't help but wonder how an unknown young woman had affected Ryuk the way she had and was able to easily defeat him with the so-called 'Life Script'.

It didn't take long for him to collapse on a staircase in the other part of the building and lay down just to catch his breath. _'Maybe…maybe if I just lie down. I'll get back up in two minutes. They won't catch me…maybe if I just…'_

Then all went black.

--

"Well, now that it's all over, I can get back to more important things." Ryuk said with a grin.

--

She waited for what seemed like forever before Ryuk had returned, Keegan literally threw herself at him. She couldn't believe that he was still alive after what he probably did. "You're okay! You're alive! You're not kapoot!" She exclaimed, suddenly kissing him without warning and squeezing him into a tight hug. "Oh my god…"

"You know, you've really gotta cut this habit out of hugging me so tightly, it's kind of awkward and annoying at the same time." Though he had to admit having Keegan kiss him again wasn't expected and thoroughly enjoyable.

"Sorry." Keegan apologized.

"Where will you go from here?" Miss Lidner asked her while Ryuk got on the bike.

"Home. Probably. Maybe we'll go look for that apple orchard I promised to take him to." Keegan laughed softly. "Back in America."

"Aren't you worried about when you get old and you can't die?" Near asked her, referring to the Life Script.

Keegan pulled the notebook out from the confines of her jacket. "…I'll manage." She smiled. "That's how destiny works. She likes to weave many webs of mystery." She hopped on the bike in front of Ryuk.

"Thank you, for your help, Miss Kuro." Near said with a very admirable smile at her.

Keegan saluted him. "No. Thank you, for keeping my identity under wraps and not exposing me to the public. I appreciate your respect of my privacy."

"And you, Mr. Shinigami?" Near asked as Ryuk revved the engine of his bike up.

"Oh, me? Yeah. There's not much else to do. I guess I'll just have to deal with Keegan for the rest of my existence. There's not really much else to do. I had my fun watching Light from afar. In time though it all really felt like I was getting back at him. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted."

Keegan elbowed him in the gut. "Hey..."

"We'll keep in touch." She assured to Agent N. "Oh…by the way." She said suddenly looking back over at Near with a smile. "You guys were never really 'legit' cops in the police on Joe's case were you?"

"No." Gevanni chuckled.

"So, Agent N…what's your real name?" Keegan asked him.

"I'm sorry Miss Phelps, that has to remain confidential." Near told her. "However you may refer to me as: Near." He informed.

"Near it is."

"Hey…" Ryuk hissed, putting his arms around Keegan in a protective hug. "Mitts off my girl…" He growled.

They looked at him funny and she shook her head. "Sorry guys, we've got to go. He's getting overprotective." Keegan giggled. "I'll be seeing you guys around, maybe."

"As you said: 'We'll keep in touch'. Miss Phelps." Near told her.

That said, Keegan and Ryuk zoomed off on the bike into the sunset.

--

"Hey!" She exclaimed over the revving of the motor at a stoplight.

"Hm?" Ryuk said.

"I've got an idea." She told him. "I know that he probably never expected to die so soon…but…I think I'd like to add salt to his wounds." Keegan explained.

"You mean Light? Why? What are you going to do?" Ryuk asked as Keegan took out The Life Script with a pencil. "Keegan…"

"Tell me Ryuk, was it really his time or no?" Keegan asked.

"Well..uh…Not really." Ryuk admitted. "Keegan you're not…you're not gonna forgive him for everything he's done. Are you? I mean, that would be just stupid after all the trouble I just went through-"

"Ohhh…Ryuk. I can always forgive people, but let's just say Mr. Yagami is in for a rude awakening." She grinned.

"What are you babbling on about Keegan? I'm not understanding what you mean." He said, speeding up in traffic.

"Death seems like an easy way out for some criminals, so Light dying was a little too easy for him to get out of being arrested and Mr. Mikami committed suicide out of cowardice. So they need to learn their lesson."

"Why bring them back?"

"It'll be one mre thing to do with the Life Script just to mock Mr. Yagami. Mr. Yagami and Mr. Mikami shall never know the bliss of death in their eyes until it is truly their time." Keegan said, her pencil scratching onto the black pages of the Life Script.

_Light Yagami_

_Mikami Teru_

The names glowed on the Life Script and Keegan slapped the notebook closed with a smug grin. "It is finished."

--

"Ooh. He's dead all right. All those gunshots." Aizawa said while the EMTs allowed the Task Force and SPK members to stare at Light's body with shame. "Wish we could have sent him to jail though…" Aizawa growled. "Damn it."

"Sorry…" Matsuda sniffled. "I lost it."

"No, Matsuda. It's all right." Aizawa assured. "Maybe it was for the best."

"What about Mikami?" Matsuda winced as they took Mikami's covered body into the other ambulance.

"Wish Mikami hadn't killed himself at the last second. At least we could have gotten him." There was silence between the party members before suddenly they heard one of the paramedics exclaim something.

"I'VE GOT PULSES!"

"What?" Aizawa whispered.

"…Miss Phelps." Near said suddenly in realization of what had happened, quickly turning his head to watch as Mikami was suddenly thrashing on the stretcher in the other vehicle.

--

Light's eyes slowly opened and he suddenly found everyone staring at him. "Ugh...Huh?

"Well, Well Mr. Yagami." Near said suddenly from the doorway of the ambulance when Light caught Near's gaze. "I guess Miss Kuro had a heart to forgive you. Nevertheless…"

"No…" Light whispered in horror.

"You're under arrest." Gevanni said officially announcing the end of Kira's reign of terror. Handcuffs were slapped on Light's hands

"AAAHHHH!!!!" Mikami screamed from the other vehicle. "WHY AM I STILL ALIVE?!"

"KUROOOOOO!!!!" Light snarled suddenly from his position on the stretcher. "NOOOOO!!!"

--

As Keegan and Ryuk zoomed off onto a highway, Ryuk couldn't help but laugh.

"Oh, ho. Keegan you're a genius and I love ya!" He cackled.

"Yeah, yeah. I know I am." Keegan chuckled smugly to herself. "I'm actually proud to say it this time."

The black Nightrod cut off a few cars on the road, horns honking at them, and all that could be heard was Ryuk laughing and Keegan yelling.

"RYUK STOP THAT!"

"…It's all for you."

"Yeah, yeah."

--

Authoress Note: The end, stay-tuned folks. And when I mean stay tuned I do mean: YES. There's an Epilogue coming up. Muahahah!


	28. Til Death: Epilogue

Authoress Note: Aw come on guys! Did you think I was gonna end the story without an epilogue? That's no fun! Haha.

You knew there had to be more than just the end of the story. So I'll have you guys let your minds wander on possibilities of the epilogue. Teehee.

--

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps) and others, belong to me. Thanks._

--

He was a fledgling. His brash attitude, his distinguishable outfit and how he had little respect for the other shinigamis. This particular shinigami was giving the others lip about something they didn't really feel like talking about. He was about the height of a normal human with what looked to be an outfit similar to that of the infamous Red Baron from the 1940s fighter plane that went down. Any human could have literally mistaken this shinigami as his ghost if one saw him, but he didn't really care what anybody thought what he looked like.

His little red pupils glowed brightly as he hissed. "I heard there was a shinigami that went to the human world and did something interesting…"

The group of shinigamis he was questioning had been in the middle of a game when he interrupted them. They all seemed clearly displeased and annoyed that this 'boy' was looking for trouble to start while they clearly had been enjoying their game.

"You don't want to go to the human world."

"Yeah, it's not worth it."

He was getting frustrated with their behavior towards him, they seemed to be ignoring every question he asked or dismissed it as though he was nothing more than an animal bothering them. He yanked off the bony weapon on his back and slammed it down in front of them, breaking their gambling bowl in half with a snarl. "I said, I want to see the shinigami who went to the human world! Tell me where he is!"

"What do you want to go see him for?"

"That's the stupidest idea ever."

"Yeah, he's no fun."

"I'm not leaving until I get answers…" The antagonizing shinigami growled.

All the turmoil in this situation seemed to stop between the arguing shinigamis because a calm had suddenly washed over the area and a figure in a white cloak had suddenly approached the group, carrying a ferry pole and a lantern attached to it with a blue flame.

As if frightened by the sight, the gambling shinigamis drew back slightly at the sight of this mysterious figure before the cloaked person spoke in an aged feminine voice. "I hear you seek the one that came to the human world."

"The Keeper..." One of the shinigamis in the back whispered.

The pole slammed into the dusty ground and the figure suddenly swung it at the other shinigamis with great ferocity until they fled, leaving the fledgling alone with the stranger.

The interested shinigami that had been demanding answers only moments ago turned his attention to this strange being standing in front of him without hesitation to speak to him nonchalantly about the event. "Yes. Who are you?"

"Whom I am is not important." Said the person in the white cloak, beckoning him to follow. "If it is he that you seek, please follow me. I shall lead you to him."

'_Huh?'_ Wait, this mysterious stranger knew where to find the shinigami he was searching for? Odd. How was hat possible? He had been told that this particular shinigami was a loner and often liked being off alone without any questions asked by the other shinigamis. But, how could he not follow when the offer to be taken to this special shinigami was so willingly given?

"So, what's your name?" He asked curiously.

"I've told you before, who I am is not of any importance. It will only cause you to turn back." The figure informed. "I appreciate your asking though. Shows you have spunk and personality." The figure chuckled.

He walked along behind the stranger without much thought and only followed because he believed this one knew where they were going. He was led through a series of bone yards and finally to an aged stairway and an alcove overhanging down onto scenery below that showed yet a larger bone yard.

In the dusky breeze, a clearly aged Ryuk slowly turned his head. "Hm?"

The figure in white moved aside to gesture with a long sleeve to the shinigami next to them calmly before setting up the lantern in the center of the alcove before taking a seat off to a side corner to watch the two converse. "This one has heard of your adventures. He wants to hear your story."

"I think you'll find it's worth your time." The younger fledgling tossed a withered apple at Ryuk, who easily caught it.

"Huh…" He mumbled. "I'd prefer a juicy one."

Without being asked, the one in the white cloak approached Ryuk and touched the withered apple.

As if by magic the apple turned a bright red and was juicy.

"Eh?" The fledgling said, greatly troubled by this.

Ryuk ate the apple slowly, without the same ravenous behavior he experienced when he was a young shinigami once.

"Very well, what do you want to know?"

"…Everything." The other shinigami asked, trying to get the image of the apple returning to life out of his head.

"The human world is interesting…a man who tired to change the world was interesting…and so was the woman who stopped him." Ryuk spoke.

The figure shifted slightly after returning to their previous seat. "Humans are interesting."

"Tch. Yeah, got that right." Ryuk mumbled, looking out onto the bone yard below. From there. Ryuk began his tale of Light Yagami and how he had acquired the Death Note.

"You dropped a Death Note? By accident?" The young shinigami asked, skeptical.

"More like on purpose." Said the cloaked figure.

Ryuk's faded vision, gave a small glare at the other before turning his attention back to the young fledgling. "Now, it's been said that…if there are books of death, shouldn't there be one of life as well?"

Ryuk chuckled softly, and then he began laughing. "Ahahah. Well, yes. That's what they say. There's always been talk of a book of Life. There's always a book of Life in stories of Death." He said the last part sarcastically. "Then again, in this story…there is."

He stood up and turned to face the other shinigami with a grin. "The man who tried to change the world with the Death Note was in for a rude awakening, for he did not realize there was also a book of Life. This book of Life of course was an enigma in itself. It was almost as though it had a personality to begin with. It grew like a human child does, with immaturity then into something potentially successful." Ryuk was pacing. "I stole it once." He explained.

"I've heard tale of the Script of Life. I hear it's still not back where it belongs. Do you still have it? Are you saving humans with it?" The young shinigami asked.

"What shinigami gives life?" The figure in white asked, standing up. "That would be hypocritical of any shinigami to do so…" Now the stranger was pacing in Ryuk's place. "The Life Script, as some say is a certain notebook that was made to counteract Death Notes. There is only one, and the stories with it vary."

"How? Where did it come from?" The shinigami asked.

"The versions change. Some say that the Shinigami King acquired it because he made a deal with an angel to let a soul in Mu go to heaven, another story says the shinigami king was given it as a gift, then of course there is the age-old tale that a shinigami made it as a love token to a human." The white figure stopped in front of the young shinigami, and lifted up an arm, covered by the long sleeves of the cloak, which the hand could not visibly be seen.

"Of course, as they say: the stories change. The tales are retold and no one really knows the true story."

The stranger moved away from the two shinigamis calmly before Ryuk snorted in discomfort, obviously strained from standing straight up instead of hunched over, as he usually would be now. He crouched back down and chuckled. "The origins of the notebook of Life are complex and none truly know where it divulged from. In fact, I don't even think the Shinigami King himself can even begin to fathom how it was made."

Ryuk turned his head back to the bone yard and chuckled. "The man who tried to change the world wasn't as interesting as the woman was. Humans are interesting and boring at the same time." He explained. "They're hypocrites and paradoxical in a sense but the human woman that tried to stop the man was rare event." He sighed.

Ryuk looked up, recalling the events of when he first dropped the Life Script.

--

"…_Oh, yeah…Uh…boo?"_

"_Boo? Oh, that's original. So, Mr. Poltergeist. You like apples huh?"_

"_Hm? Oh. Yeah. Call it my personal drug."_

"_Apples? A drug? So, they're like your crack basically? Nice notebook you gave me by the way."_

--

"_What's you're name?"_

"_You can call me Ryuk."_

"_Well Ryuk, it's nice to meet you. I'm Keegan."_

_--_

"_This doesn't belong to you? You stole this from your own kind? That's stealing."_

"_Hey! Look, if you don't want it, all you gotta do is hand it back to me and we can be done with this little game we're playing here. Make your choice all ready kid, because your pissing me off."_

"_Tell me Ryuk…do you know Kira?"_

"_What makes you think I'll tell you?"_

--

_"All right, well if you don't care about me, when's my birthday?"_

_"October 12, 1987. Ooh..."_

_"Don't care about me, huh?"_

_--_

He couldn't help but reminisce on fond memories, Ryuk looked up briefly at the fledgling

He couldn't help but look a little bored. "Is this going somewhere?"

The cloaked stranger snarled suddenly, jumping to their feet. "You wanted to hear the story, so listen!" This being was clearly angry and bothered by something, but the behavior was off and threatening to the fledgling.

He was caught off guard and drew back, looking at the stranger funny before he saw down. "Fine."

--

The rest of the story was told in a perspective that showed Ryuk had been there to see it all. Ryuk was there when the criminals died, Ryuk was there when he met the man who found his Death Note and Ryuk had stolen the Life Script. "I saw it all." He looked back at the fledgling with a grin. "You know something? I'd do it all again."

The fledgling gave him a funny look. "You would? Why?"

Ryuk shrugged. "Because. Good things came out of it. I know many shinigamis were pissed off about the whole ordeal…but for the record, humans can adapt to almost anything given the circumstances." Ryuk cracked his neck.

"So, what ever happened to the man that tried to change the world?" He was asked.

Ryuk shrugged. "The man? Oh, he died a long time ago. It was a while before he did die though. There's any different circumstances involving humans who acquire Death Notes. The man was supposed to be killed by me, so I killed him, the woman though brought him back in the end so that he would get what was coming to him. It all worked out in the end. The contract between the man and the Death Note were severed."

The stranger said nothing for several moments before speaking again from behind them, "The Life Script has a contract too you know."

The young shinigami glanced behind him at the cloaked figure and turned his head with a growl. "Oh? How does that work?"

"The Life Script has 20 rules pertaining to it that counteract any Death Note rules as well, depending on the circumstances. The last rule states…" The stranger trailed off.

"_Should the human user and shinigami in the binding contract share more than just the contract, the human will die when the shinigami dies." _Ryuk finished.

The fledgling jumped to his feet suddenly. "W-What? So…that would mean, the human would live on? Immortally?"

"Everything has to die at some point…except, my time isn't up yet." The stranger reached up a hand to draw back the hood of the cloak to reveal a thoroughly aged woman that appeared to be around 70, but must have been much older than her visage showed. Her once red hair had gone white with age and her green eyes were faded in color but still full of life. This old woman of course was once Keegan Allison Phelps.

Ryuk couldn't help but shake his head. "I was wondering when you were going to take that thing off your head? I hate it when you where it."

The young shinigami was horribly confused by this. "A human? In the shinigami realm? How is this possible?"

"It's not like I haven't been here before. After all, I am the Keeper of the Life Script, 'til I die." Keegan pulled out the white notebook from underneath the cloak. "…I'm Keegan, it's nice to meet you. Sorry to have this come as a shock, but I'm not able to go anywhere else too much anymore."

Ryuk held out a hand towards her. "I told you, good things happen to bad shinigamis like me." He chuckled.

Keegan shook her head at him, and strode over towards him to sit beside him, which her wrapped an arm around her. "You should visit the human world, it's quite…an adventure. You go there and you'll experience something you may never forget for the rest of your existence."

When Keegan had looked up to look for the young shinigami, she found him gone. "Hm. He's gone. I guess I scared him off."

"You could scare anybody off even if you weren't old." Ryuk snickered.

She frowned and elbowed him in the gut. "Hey."

"Oh. Careful. I'm a whole lot older than you are. I'm starting to feel the age difference affecting me here." Ryuk grumbled.

The old woman leaned back into Ryuk's chest and stared out onto the bleak world around her. "I think the world is happy now." She said softly. "And if I try to fix it again because some idiot messes it up…they can't catch me now." Keegan laughed.

Ryuk pulled her closer and rested his head on her shoulder. "Did I ever tell you how much I love you?" He chuckled.

"You have, you're only saying it now because we're alone together most of the time and no one cares anymore." Keegan shook her head.

"You know. Getting you to stay here wasn't absolutely easy for me to do. Tricking the shinigami king again wasn't working…how did you do it when I couldn't?" Ryuk asked.

Keegan held up the Life Script to show the book had significantly grown slightly worn from being in her possession, but it had aged like a fine wine and was still just as good. "He knew that if he sent you through any sort of punishment…I think he felt threatened because if we were killed here he knew I'd come back as an angel seeking vengeance. I think that's why, I scared him, Ryuk."

"I told you, you have a knack for being scary sometimes. I'm surprised it worked so well on the Shinigami King. The _King_." He said, voice muffled into her shoulder, and held his hands around her waist. "I knew you'd come for me if I was convicted."

"They almost got you for running over Joe." Keegan laughed.

"But Joe's dead now." Ryuk chuckled.

"A lot of my friends and family are dead now Ryuk…You're all I have left."

"You're the only thing I've got." Ryuk scoffed. "Don't say things like that. It makes you sound all sappy and then I'll get all sappy and then you'll cry and…"

She silenced him by placing a finger over his blackened lips. "Ryuk."

"Yeah?"

"Just shut up and Kiss me."

His jagged grin returned to his face and he pressed his forehead against hers.

"'Til Death."

--

Authoress: And I leave you to go on with whatever theories or ideas you like. Thanks for enjoying the Life Script as much as I have. It's been a pleasure writing it.


	29. Chapter Extras: At the Movies

Authoress Note: Okay guys, so I decided that I would add in a few little 'yayness' tidbit chapters for you. Some are extras and involve some Keegan x Ryuk shipping and among other things. I just thought I'd put it in to let you guys know I'm still not over the story being over. Haha.

Thanks. Enjoy.

--

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps) and others, belong to me. Thanks._

--

It had been a while since she had last gone out to a movie with anyone in particular. In fact, Keegan hadn't been out to see a movie since she had first been with Joe. The week had generally been boring and all Keegan and Ryuk had been doing since they had gotten back from Japan was play video games and occasionally have Ryuk ask her the same annoying question of getting a kiss from her at all again.

She was bored and Ryuk was antsy. What was the worst that could happen if they went to the movie theatre? "Hey." She said suddenly.

Ryuk, as usual, when bored was busy tormenting Lucil behind her couch. When she had called to him, Ryuk's head popped out from behind the couch above her and he couldn't help but grin. "Yeah? What?"

"I'm thinking we should go see a movie." She suggested.

"Haven't we seen enough movies in my existence? It's not going to be another 80s flick is it?" Ryuk stuck his tongue out at the thought of another crappy 80s movie. Keegan seemed to always have some sort of fascination for stuff that was way before her time and she rightly justified liking 80s because she was born in that era.

"I meant, at the movie theatre. A movie that just came out, I'm talking about. In the Year 2009." Keegan's mouth quickly turned into a frown as he brought strong criticism to anything remotely related to the 80s.

"Oh. Well…I guess, if it gets us out of the house. I'm sick of being in here and it's just about spring by now." Ryuk floated upside down in front of her. "So…yeah. I'm game for it. But I should get to pick the movie this time. You always pick it and I'm kind of not in the mood to watch anything that has to do with death or horror."

Keegan's hopes had somewhat dropped when he had declined the idea of any horror film. Her arms crossed and she muttered. "Wow Ryuk, thanks. I thought you'd like The Last House on the Left." She said sarcastically.

"Don't be ridiculous Keegan." He tossed a newspaper at her and growled. "I heard about the original version and I don't really much want to watch some guy get his head slammed in a microwave. It's not professional. It's not shinigami style." His dark humor wasn't that funny to Keegan and she peeled the newspaper off her.

"Okay fine. I'll look something up online and you can go pick it out. No Disney stuff though. I'm not into kid stuff."

15 minutes later, Keegan and Ryuk were surfing local movie sites to see what was playing.

"All right, it's between Watchmen, Coraline, and Slumdog Millionaire, which one do you want to see?" Keegan asked.

"Not into the Misfit Super Hero stuff." Ryuk answered, declining Watchmen.

"Okay, then Slumdog Millionaire or Coraline?"

"I'd rather watch sketchy animation than some heartfelt drama." Ryuk stuck his tongue out.

"Okay. Coraline it is." Keegan sighed.

--

The movie theatre wasn't that crowded, it had been about a month since the film was released and there was only a bunch of people going to see the most recent films that had come out. Keegan stood in line with Ryuk in his 'human' form. He was leaning back and forth in an annoyed manner because the couple in front of them was getting on his nerves.

"You know, I really think I shouldn't get popcorn." The girl complained.

"Well, that's fine honey, we can just get a couple boxes of candy instead." Her boyfriend tried to suggest something else to appease her.

"Nooo…Candy's not good for me either."

They went back and forth about what they could get either way before Ryuk cut in.

"Hey, look Missy. They've had the same stuff since about 1956, Popcorn, candy, and soda pop. Just decide all ready because you're pissin' me off." He grit his teeth and Keegan slapped her forehead in embarrassment.

The two in front of them obviously gave him a baffled look before he put an arm around Keegan. "And you're getting on my girlfriend's nerves."

'_Oh no. Not this again. He said 'girlfriend', to people I don't even know.'_ "It's not a problem, really. He's like this all the time." Was Keegan's excuse. "Really, sorry for the trouble."

"Well, maybe you should just go somewhere else then." The other girl sneered.

Keegan frowned and gave a rather irate and serious response. "I'll stay where I am thanks. Now turn around, you're up next in line."

Before anything else could be exchanged between the two couples, the cashier at the counter asked them if they wanted anything.

They ended up getting a small bag of popcorn in the end and Keegan and Ryuk were left to themselves without any more interaction with the annoying couple.

Keegan and Ryuk were now left with the decision of what to get. "So…what do you want?" Ryuk asked her.

"Well…I'm not big on popcorn, so probably just some gummi snacks and snocaps." She suggested.

"They got any apples?" Ryuk asked her.

Keegan gave him a look and shook her head. "Ryuk, movie theatres don't-"

"Actually Miss, we are carrying the pre-packaged Motts Apple Packs if you're interested." The cashier informed.

Keegan's jaw almost dropped and Ryuk couldn't help but grin at her face that read: 'epic fail' all over it. "Sold!" was his response.

In the end Keegan was given a tray with a box of gummi fruit and several apple packets littering the tray all over the place.

"I hate you." She said from behind the little mountain of apple packets.

Ryuk took the tray from her and he gave her a cocky smirk. "I know you don't really mean that."

"Shut up." Keegan grumbled as they entered theatre 12 and walked in to see they were basically the only ones seeing the movie save for a few teenagers down in the middle section.

"Heyyyyyyy…." Ryuk said, obviously pleased with this scenario. "We've basically got the whole place to ourselves almost."

"Don't get any ideas." Keegan glared at him before they made their way up to the top section where the teenagers down below wouldn't be able to see them too well up where they were.

They sat down and Ryuk opened the first packet of apples and took a bite out of two slices. "So, this is what we've been reduced to? Bad digital stop-motion animation?" He chuckled.

Keegan shook her head as she took a sip of her Coke. "No, Ryuk. Tim Burton's a very good direction. If you would have come sooner in my life, you and I could have seen Sweeney Todd instead."

"Sweeney what?" Ryuk said, greatly confused by whatever nonsense had just spilled from her mouth. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"…Nevermind. Movie's beginning." Keegan said, trying to change the subject.

About 15 minutes into the movie, Ryuk had finished his apple packets and he had once again become bored. Sure, the movie was fine and everything was going well but there was nothing else really worth doing here.

"Hey, why are we here again?" He asked her.

Her mind had been on the movie and not much else until he had asked her such a stupid question and Keegan chewed on her straw in agitation. "Because you wanted to get out of the house?"

Somehow, he didn't believe that Keegan had 'just wanted to get out of the house' 100%. "Come on Keegan, you didn't just come out here for nothing. This movie had something more to it, didn't it?" He asked her.

Keegan waved a hand at him. "No, it didn't, I just thought we should get out of the house for a little bit. I'm serious." She insisted. Then again, Keegan didn't want Ryuk knowing that this was really another 'date'.

His perplexed expression had suddenly turned into a mischievous grin. "Ohhhh….Keegan. Don't give me that. You're hiding something…"

She bit on her straw and began slurping on her soda, only there was nothing left but ice. "Noooooo…." Keegan insisted.

"Yessssssss…." Ryuk continued to prod at the situation. Then again, he knew better. Keegan was stubborn and never admitted a lot of things. "Keegan."

"What?!" She hissed.

Ryuk's grin had gotten wider and he quick kissed her on the nose without warning.

"GAH!"

"This is a date isn't it?" He snickered.

Keegan of course wasn't giving up without a fight and took out an ice cube from her drink and dropped it down the front of the t-shirt underneath him.

Now, when Ryuk couldn't feel cold that only implied to weather purposes. Keegan's ice cube down his shirt was a different story and Ryuk writhed from the ice-cold feeling before he dug the ice cube out and proceeded to crumple of the apple packets and throw them at her.

Keegan of course retaliated with her ice cube arsenal before the teenagers below foully yelled out to them: "Get a room!"

"Bite me!" Ryuk snapped.

"Mind your own business!" Keegan retaliated.

There wasn't anything else because the teenagers had left and Keegan and Ryuk were now alone.

"Hey…" Ryuk said in realization. His grin returning. "We're alone." He snickered.

"Wow Ryuk…you really know how to clear out a room."

"Well…nobody's here now. Wanna kiss me?"

"In your dreams."


	30. Chapter Extras: I just love apples

Authoress Note: ^o^ All right folks, since you seemed to like the extra chapters so much I'll add one every now and then. Now, I've recently been informed that I should create a sequel of The Life Script, but I'm not too keen on it. I'm not sure where it would go. So…anybody have any ideas to offer or any support for a sequel, I would much appreciate some comment support. Thanks so much.

--

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps) and others, belong to me. Thanks._

--

It had been a while since Keegan had ever thought she would go to this place, but it was the least she could do. It would be one more step in making sure that both she and Ryuk were happy with the results. If anything, Keegan had never ever thought to be doing this, especially with Ryuk.

Just being here made her skin crawl, even if Ryuk, or 'Roy', was with her. So, standing behind him as the police officer led them to the appropriate phone booth, Ryuk sat down and picked up the receiver. He waited patiently until a young man in an orange jumpsuit came out and sat down into the chair.

Ryuk, sat there with his eyes burning with such hatred and his teeth grit together. Joe of course looked very tired and gruff from his time in prison. The officer was standing next to Keegan.

When Joe looked up to grab the receiver his hand froze in mid-air and he was staring face to face with the monster that was hanging around Keegan all the time now.

"Pick it up, jackass." Ryuk hissed.

His hand didn't move and Joe certainly didn't want to say anything or speak at all. Ryuk slammed his fist against the counter and snarled. "Pick up that fuckin' phone or I'll come in there and make your life hell!" He snarled.

The cop stepped forward to reprimand Ryuk, but Keegan held him back. "It's okay. He's just overprotective. Remember, this is the ex-boyfriend that was trying to kill me." She assured.

The cop settled back into place, and Joe gradually picked up the receiver.

"…You…you come to take me to hell then?"

"Pfft! I wish!" Ryuk growled. "You have no idea what I wanna do to you right now. You know how hard it was for me to come here."

Joe's face contorted into a scowl. "How could she pick YOU over me? Have you looked in a mirror lately pal?"

Ryuk looked down at his Harley Davidson jacket and grinned. "Actually, yeah. I have." He chuckled darkly. "Lately I've been liking myself a lot." For a shinigami, that wasn't normal. Oh well.

Joe gripped the phone tightly. "You ruined my life, you know that-"

"Well, judging by my special powers, you've only got so much longer to live." Ryuk sighed, nonchalantly looking down at his spindly fingers and cracking his knuckles.

"No shit! If I stay in here any longer I'll get shanked!"

"Or raped in the ass…" Ryuk muttered.

"What?" Joe said suddenly, alarmed.

"Oh. Nothing." Ryuk grinned suddenly. "I was just saying something in Japanese." He lied.

"No, the part about getting raped…what?" Joe asked him again.

"Now, you're sounding crazy." Ryuk chuckled. "You'd best stop that Joe before they keep you locked up for the rest of your life. My idea is, by the time you're 80, we'll be long gone and you'll never remember my face again. Of course…I'm pretty hard to forget."

"Don't call me by my name! I don't even KNOW you. How the hell did some fucked up monster like you get with my girl!?"

"…Great minds think alike Joseph." Ryuk whispered. "You just remember, I you EVER break out of prison again and you come after Keegan, I'll be the first person you run into and the only thing you'll remember is getting run down by my bike…" He hissed into the receiver. "So it's over pal. Get it through you're fuckin' head or I'll come back here and make sure you understand. _Clearly_."

Before Joe could say anything, Keegan was on the receiver then. Her hair let down and curly this time. Her hand clutched the receiver and she sneered. "When I said it's over, I mean it. Now, feel it and if you try to kill TJ ever again, I'll make sure that he DOES send you to hell." Her hand slammed the receiver down and she stood up to go over to Ryuk leaning up against the wall.

Joe stood blathering inaudibly behind the glass window before Ryuk put an arm around Keegan and left with her.

--

"So, what do you wanna do now?" Ryuk yelled over the motor of the bike.

"Not sure, maybe we could hang out in Cincinnati for a bit!" Keegan responded, watching the traffic carefully.

"Nah. Not into the big city thing right now. Hey! Hey! How about another movie?" Ryuk asked, awfully keen on that idea again.

"No Ryuk, we're not seeing a movie so you can try to make out with me again in the theatre, it's just not-MMF!" Keegan screamed as Ryuk leaned down in order to shut her up with another kiss.

After Ryuk broke away, Keegan elbowed him in the gut. "You ass!" She snarled.

He was cackling wildly as they zoomed through the streets. "Wouldn't ya know it Keegan? Maybe there is something we can do. Did you find out if there were any apple orchards nearby?"

Keegan frowned up at him. "After that feat? You think I'm gonna lead you to a frickin' orchard just like that?"

"Well…you should be getting used to this stuff by now. I mean we ARE in a relationship. Plus, I'm not going back to the shinigami realm anytime soon…or even at all for that matter." Ryuk stopped at a stoplight and reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out and apple. He chomped on it hungrily before he finished it and he threw the core to the side.

"Ew, Ryuk. Don't litter. That's unsanitary and the world wouldn't like that." Keegan grimaced in disgust.

"Ain't got time to pick it up. So let's just figure out what we're doing today." Ryuk grinned, he revved the engine on the bike and they were off again. They rode around town for a while before Ryuk caught sight of something he hadn't noticed before.

A carnival. "Hey!" He said, stopping the bike at the end of a street that overlooked a large mall parking lot. "Look." He pointed out.

Keegan had been too focused on Ryuk's traffic skills to pay attention to anything else. "Huh? What?"

"What's that?" He asked.

Keegan peered over the handles of the bike and stared down at the parking lot below. "Oh. That. It's a carnival. You've never been to a carnival?"

Ryuk shrugged. "Not really. There were a couple back when I used to be around Light, but I never went to one. So, no."

Keegan's gaze didn't leave the giant Ferris wheel nor did her nose ignore the scent of funnel cake wafting up from below. "Hmm…If I promise to take you there, will you behave?" She asked him.

He slapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled Keegan closer to him. "Maybe…"

"Get off. NOW."

--

Ryuk had never really had a rush of excitement in quite a while. The sights and sounds had Ryuk alert at every corner, and having Keegan with her arm linked through his wasn't too bad either. He was grinning from ear to ear like a kid in a candy store.

"Enjoying yourself?" Keegan asked him, as they stopped at the end of a funnel cake line.

"Hey! Hey! Is that a contest?" Ryuk asked, pointed over to what looked like several large picnic tables on a stage.

"Yeah, pie eating contests." Keegan said, watching as the line moved forward and they loomed closer and closer to sweet delicious funnel cake.

"…Apple Pie, contest." Ryuk whispered in her ear. Keegan's attention was drawn over towards the contest area and she did in fact see on the sign. First contest: 'Apple Pies'.

"Oh no." Keegan said. "No way! You ARE not! You are-Hey wait…' That gave Keegan an idea. "Actually…yeah. Why not?"

Ryuk's attention was drawn away from the pie area before it was on Keegan again. Her face had that conniving little grin on it and he couldn't help but worry. "Keegan, what are you doing?"

"You enter that contest Ryuk, you're gonna win and you won't eat apples for a week, because of so much apple pie. You're going to not have 'crack' cravings for a while." Her green eyes had gone dark with mischief and Ryuk twitched.

"You're…joking right?"

--

He couldn't believe this, how in the world Keegan had tricked him into this he would never know. Maybe it was because of something that had pissed her off only moments before.

"Hey, Keegan." Came a voice from behind them.

It was some guy from one of her classes at school. Frat boys. Oh no. Dean Thompson.

"Oh…Dean." Keegan said, somewhat awkwardly. She had forgotten to mention to Ryuk that there were a few boys that did have some kind of crush on Keegan in her college classes.

"What's goin' on?"

"She's here with her boyfriend bub." Ryuk growled at him, his arm tightened around Keegan.

"Boyfriend? Hey, last I heard she wasn't available after what happened with Joe." Dean scoffed.

"Yeah, well she's been seein' other people." Ryuk defended.

"Other people? Meaning, a punk like you?"

'_Okay, that does it._' Keegan thought angrily. "Yeah, actually…I have."

"Really huh? Well…how about ditchin' this guy and hangin' out with me for a bit. I'm entering the pie contest soon."

Keegan's frown turned even grimmer at this though and she pulled Ryuk closer to her suddenly. "Nah. I'll stay where I am thanks."

"So are you seriously her boyfriend or is this just a ploy to get me the hell out of here?" Dean asked, skeptical.

Ryuk gave a chilling scowl at this boy and suddenly found Keegan's face inches from his.

"Keegan…what-"

"Come here…"

Then it was there. Ryuk's arms locked by his sides and he couldn't help but grin through the kiss as the other boy shook his head in disgust and walked away.

Keegan pulled away and quickly wiped her mouth on her sleeve. "Now, enter the contest and make him look like shit for messing with you."

Ryuk was numb for several seconds before he nipped her ear suddenly. "I've got him covered, Keegan." He grinned. "But this is only because you'll owe me later."

"Keep, dreaming. One time deal only."

--

So now here Ryuk was, sitting at a picnic table next to that ass face with a fork and knife in hand. Then again, Ryuk didn't really need these to eat apple pie.

Dean was a sleazy looking guy and he looked a little snarky for his own taste. Football player. Ryuk judged by his muscles. "You ready to puke your guts out?"

"I don't have any." Ryuk grinned. "I'm a bottomless pit."

"Sure you are."

"Contestants ready!"

Ryuk put his knife and fork down as the first pie was put in front of him. "Set!"

"Go!"

The pie eating looked practically savage from where Keegan was standing. Dean was chowing down like a bulldog and Ryuk, seemed to be the only one that actually was eating more civilized than Keegan had seen him.

His pie was gone before anyone's and he was presented with his second pie. By the time everyone else was calming down or having had enough of pie, Ryuk was setting a straight record and some of the others just had to stop eating and watch as Ryuk chowed down his 32nd pie in a row.

"He's a frickin' machine!" Dean exclaimed. "What the hell! Why aren't you sick yet?"

"I told you…" Ryuk said, mouth full of crumbs. "I'm a bottomless pit."

"Bottomless pit my foot." Keegan laughed from the crowd.

When time was called, the pies were counted up, and even the judges couldn't believe that Ryuk had managed to eat all of those apple pies at once. There wasn't anything really possible for Ryuk to have used any drugs to have eaten all of those pies.

In the end, he was declared the winner and presented with a pie trophy. And a record entitled: 'Roy's Wracking Record': 50-pies in a row.'

As Ryuk stepped down from the stage and leapt towards Keegan with the trophy in hand.

"Hey! I won!"

"I can see that. I knew you would." Keegan chuckled.

"Hey! Hey! Man, I gotta know you're secret!" Dean huffed, looking quite ill from watching Ryuk eating all those pies.

"You…you gotta tell me."

Ryuk only grinned, his arm around Keegan and responded-

"I just love apples."

--

Authoress Note: And now you know, that yes, Shiigamis can win pie eating contests. ^o^


	31. Chapter Extras: Paying Respects

Authoress Note: Okay, I haven't updated this in quite a while, I hope all of my old reviewer pals here can forgive me.

I want to take the time to thank those new readers who favorited the story. That was very nice of you and I'm very grateful. Also, I compiled a playlist for a sort of small soundtrack for The Life Script. The List goes as such in the track order I put them in on my Itunes.

By the way:

_Disclaimer: I own none of the artists or their songs listed below. _

**Death Note Theme –Yoshihisa Hirano**

**The World- Nightmare**

**Shinigami Kai – Yoshihisa Hirano and Hideki Taniuchi**

**Paint it Black *Cover -Inkubus Sukkubus**

**Decode – Paramore**

**Our Solemn Hour – Within Temptation**

**What's Up People? – Maximum the Hormone**

**Frozen – Within Temptation**

**My Mind's Eye –Sirenia**

**Nemo- Nightwish**

**Lies- Evanescence**

**What Have You Done Now? (feat. Keith Caputo)- Within Temptation**

**The Howling- Within Temptation**

**Poison- Tarja Turunen**

**Untitled- Simple Plan**

**Seven Sirens and a Silver Tear- Sirenia**

**Moment- Tribal Chair**

**Even in Death –Evanscence**

If you have any questions, please let me know. I'll be happy to send you the files to the songs if you have trouble finding them.

--

Here we are, with another extra chapter. Hopefully this one will be doing L some justice.

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps), belong to me. Thanks_

_--_

It was a solemn place to be. It was hard to judge where Keegan was standing. If there was one thing Keegan hated doing more was going to any sort of gravesite. It reminded her too much of when her parents died and she didn't really want to be here. If Ryuk hadn't told her all about this great investigator that almost caught Mr. Yagami (practically knew it was him all along) she wouldn't have become interested to come pay her respects anyways. It hadn't been hard, Ryuk had told her that Near and L were well acquainted and she might as well give the old SPK members a call to get information and maybe some direct flight to L's grave.

_"Hi, Miss Lidner? It's me, Keegan. You remember?"_

_"Ah, Miss Phelps. Haha. How could we forget the great Kuro?"_

_"Yeah, yeah, I get it. It's an inside joke. Haha. Listen, I was wondering if I could speak to Agent Near. I have something to ask him."_

_"Certainly, one moment please…"_

_"Go on." _

_"Hey, Agent Near. I've got a favor to ask."_

_"For your Miss Phelps? Anything is in your grasp, since you helped catch Kira with us."_

_"Tell me about L…"_

_--_

And so here Keegan was, back in Japan with Ryuk at her side as she was caught staring at the monumental gravesite of one of the greatest investigators ever lived. Keegan had dressed nicely in order for her to pay her respects to the man that almost caught Mr. Yagami. He had come close; he had lasted pretty long in his endeavors, and Near had even mentioned that they had grown up in some place called the Whammy House together.

"So, this was him?" Keegan asked, holding a small vase of assorted flowers.

Ryuk shrugged. "Yeah, he was pretty interesting though. Bit of a weird one if you ask me. He was one of the other few humans that interested me. He kept Light on his feet and he got so close to him to actually investigate up front. He didn't have the same tactics as you though Keegan. As far as anyone knows, L could have reincarnated in you." Ryuk snickered.

Keegan glanced at Ryuk and shook her head. "That wouldn't be true Ryuk. No two people are alike, despite the fact I believe in poltergeist and I've come face to face with death several times, I don't think anyone could reincarnate within me. I'm too anti-religious." She laughed softly.

She set the vase down on the gravesite. "He almost did it though huh?"

"He was _thisssss_ close." Ryuk said, measuring with his thumb and pointer finger with his hand to show Keegan. "L was on the edge of cracking the case, he had the means, he knew how to prove the evidence…L's only trouble was kind of waiting until the right moment. Light may have been a little too quick for him, but L was like you in that sense. He bided his time."

Keegan looked down at the grave and she smiled softly at the grave and touched it. "Well…Mr. L, looks like I went a step further than you. Perhaps in a sense I avenged your death. At least now you can be at peace knowing that Light Yagami is no longer a threat to the world as Kira."

As Keegan turned she gestured for Ryuk to come along with her, he followed of course until Keegan stopped in her tracks when she thought she heard a whisper of an unearthly voice and she turned back to the grave to find nothing, but there was one flower laying outside of the vase in front of the gravesite.

"Hey, maybe the dead guy wants to date you too. You've got one hell of a fanbase." Ryuk chuckled.

Keegan frowned and stared at the grave before she linked arms with Ryuk. "Sorry…I'm taken." She chuckled, leaning up to Kiss Ryuk's cheek.

"Hey! Hey! How come it's okay for you to kiss me, but it's not okay for me to kiss you?!" Ryuk growled.

"It's okay now because nobody's around." She patted his arm.

"You left out something Keegan…, you didn't tell him how you did it." Ryuk said, turning back to look at the gravesite as they walked away.

"I'm sure he saw everything Ryuk, after all. Those in the afterlife have front row seats without having to buy a ticket." Keegan smiled softly.

"Think your parents would be rolling over in their graves if they knew I was your boyfriend?" Ryuk snickered.

Keegan elbowed him hard in the gut.

"OWHO!" Ryuk grunted. "Sheesh, it was a joke."

"You're not funny…"

--

Authoress Note: Sorry it's so short, but I've had it in my mind for a while that Keegan should perhaps get to pay her respects to L. Bringing L back to life in the series would bee too cliché but for those of you who wanted closure for L, I decided to put it in here. You're very welcome. Thanks, stick around for more chapter extras.


	32. Chapter Extras: Would you?

Authoress Note: Hey all! I haven't done a Extras update for a bit and due to writer's block I haven't been able to. So hopefully this will make up for some lost time. Haha. I hope you guys missed me. I missed you guys, I know. Well hopefully my writer's block stays off my back for a while and this will bring in more reviews for Origins. You know, it's not doing as well as I had hoped you know?

Well…I guess I can fix it later.

--

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Micha__el Phelps), belong to me. Thanks._

--

Bored. Bored. Bored. As of lately there hadn't been anything for Ryuk and Keegan to do lately. It was raining the whole week and Keegan didn't much feel like getting soaked by the rain.

"I'm. so. Boooooooooored!" Ryuk whined, floating upside just above Keegan's head while she lay on the couch and flipped through the channels.

"You know, I have a Nintendo DS Ryuk." Keegan informed him.

" I don't feel like playing video games today." Ryuk grumbled.

"Seriously? That's not like you." Keegan looked up at him floating around. "Not in your 'Roy' form today I see?" She asked.

"Ugh! Ya know, I've just been sick of walking around like a human for a while. Can't a shinigami just be his shinigami self for once?!" He snarled until Keegan hit him in the head with the remote control. "Ouch!"

"Don't raise your voice to me just because you're grumpy!" Keegan scolded him.

"Owwwww." He rubbed his face repeatedly. "Okay, okay. Sheesh. Sorry."

"So, what are we going to do today? It's obvious neither of us want to go outside, we don't want to play video games…"

"Hey…" Ryuk said, getting an idea in his head.

"What?" Keegan asked. Her brow rose at him as though she wouldn't trust any ideas he would have.

"We're both aware of my constant need for apples, right?" Ryuk asked.

"Yeah…your point?" Keegan said to him, lifting the remote to flip through another channel.

Ryuk grabbed it from her and tossed it to the side. "Well…I was thinking…"

"Hey!" Keegan said as he threw the remote away carelessly. "You could have broken something."

"Why don't we…bake one of those apple pies together? Ya know, since it's rainy, it's cold, and we don't got much else to do."

"Ryuk, the last time I made apple pie you burned your fingers, tried to scarf down the whole thing, burned your tongue, and-Oh. What else?"

"We kissed and made up." He snickered.

Keegan's eyes shot fire at him and she smacked him over the head with one of the couch pillows. "Shut up…That never happened."

"Ouch…" Ryuk grumbled, rubbing the top of his head. "Well…If you're not into the pie thing we could always, ya know, make out here."

Keegan glsnced back at Ryuk, with a grim expression on her face. "We are NOT making out. EVER." She said to him. "The occasional kiss is fine, but I will _never_ make out with you."

"Then I guess we're making pie, huh?" Ryuk grinned, stretching out across the couch after he sat down on it. "Heheh. Sounds good to me."

"Oh shut up and get in this damn kitchen!" She snarled at him.

"Yes…dear." Ryuk mocked her while floating into the kitchen. "You sure we don't have to go out and get apples hm?" Ryuk leaned over her shoulder while Keegan searched the contents of the refrigerator.

"Stop breathing down my neck! You realize how cold your breath is?" The hairs on the back of her neck literally were standing up as a result of this.

"Wow Keegan, what's got you on edge today?"

"Joe called while you were downstairs playing video games today and I was working on something for school."

Ryuk's teeth gnashed together in fury and the chairs around the kitchen table were suddenly flipped over. "WHAT?!" He snarled.

"Relax, I'm kidding." Keegan assured with a chuckle. "That's…not why I'm on edge today." She explained. "Today's my dad's birthday and well…you know, he's dead." She pulled out the bag of apples at the bottom of one of the drawer inside the fridge. "Okay, I thought we were out for a second."

"So, why don't you go visit your parents at the gravesite?" Ryuk suggested.

"In the _rain_? Please…" Keegan rolled her eyes. "I also got a call from Near today. Well, not Near specifically-"

"Oh, Miss Lidner?" Ryuk asked.

"No. Actually…Gevanni." Keegan said, it sounded weird when she said his name. "I mean, of all the people. I wonder why he called." She said curiously.

"What did he want?" Ryuk grumbled, staring down at the bag of apples until Keegan tore the plastic bag open and began to take out several apples. Once on the cutting board, Keegan began slicing up the apples.

"Well, he actually asked me if I wanted to go out for coffee. I accepted, but I also told him: 'You know I have a…boyfriend right?' "

Ryuk still didn't like the idea. "I don't trust him."

"Ryuk-Hey. Wait. Are you-Noooo." Keegan stopped, turned to face him, and laughed. "Are you actually jealous?"

"Remember the carnival Keegan…" Ryuk muttered. "That guy."

"Oh yeah. He was trying to 'steal' me away from you. Right. You were totally jealous then too."

"Well, I didn't know you'd be a magnet for that many human guys."

"I'm not a magnet for guys Ryuk, I'm a magnet for assholes." Keegan corrected him. "There's a difference. I mean, you remember after we came back home with our trip in Japan, most of the guys that tried flirting with me (while you were with me no doubt) were all assholes."

Ryuk didn't like to remember. "And don't get me started on-"

"Say his name…and I'll kill you." Ryuk warned.

"Kill?" Keegan said, her tone now serious and unpleasant. "KILL?" Keegan took a few steps towards him.

Ryuk drew back slightly as Keegan leaned towards him. "You'd never kill me Ryuk. The Life Script wouldn't warrant that and well, you'd feel guilty, and then I'd have to come back from the depths of wherever I go in the afterlife and take my revenge on you."

She turned back towards her sliced apples and started on the crust for the pie. "Besides, you're in too deep now with our relationship."

Ryuk muttered something unintelligible and he gnashed his teeth. "Damn you."

"I love you…" Keegan giggled.

"Suuuuuuuure, ya do." Keegan grabbed a handful of apple slices and threw them at him.

"Ooh!" Ryuk exclaimed, floating up immediately to catch every piece and shove them into his mouth. "Samples! Excellent."

"So, you're not gonna badger me about my dad's birthday today?" Keegan asked. "You usually pressure me all the time on the subject of my folks. Why not today?"

"I don't much feel like enduring your wrath today Keegan. I'm being smart today. That's why. If you're feeling guilty about it you do whatever you want. I don't care." Ryuk licked his fingers clean of any apple remnants.

"Oh. Then I guess you won't mind if I go on that coffee date with Gevanni then huh?" She smirked.

" All right! Where's my Death Note!" He exclaimed, storming off.

Keegan laughing at his folly. "Aw! Come on! I was joking!"

"That's not funny!" Ryuk hissed at her.

"You get back here and help me with this pie!" Keegan yelled at him.

"Why should I?" Ryuk snapped.

Keegan left her work once again and she snagged him by one of his ears and yanked him towards her. "Because if you don't I'm gonna take your wings, pull them through your eye sockets and then choke you with them until you get the message. Now get back in this kitchen!"

"Nghhh." Ryuk said, somewhat wary of Keegan's threat. Not that she could completely fulfill that idea, but knowing Keegan…Well. Keegan could do just about anything.

"Kay."

"Good." She said, cheerful again, and let go of him.

Keegan went back to preparing the apple pie, Ryuk leaning over her shoulder occasionally to watch what she was doing until she finally had popped it in the oven.

"What's that weird thing you humans do with uh…what is it. Eternal bonds or something?" Ryuk asked her. "I've seen it before but not very often."

"Eternal bonds? You talking about marriage?" Keegan turned towards him, her back facing he oven. "Yeah, you're talking about marriage. People do that when they've been with each other for a long time and the man proposes to the woman. It happens all the time when people want to get married. Why do you ask?"

"I went out last night while you were sleeping just to wander around for a bit. I saw a guy do that with a girl or something. It was weird." Ryuk explained.

"Yeah, that's how my parents ended up together. Dating, Marriage, and then I was born."

"Would you ever get married Keegan?" Ryuk asked.

"Hehe. Probably not. I'll end up as an old spinster in a nursing home with some Alzheimer's patient as my roommate and probably end up dying in my sleep. Yeah…" Keegan sighed.

"Heh. Maybe we should get married." Ryuk joked.

As Keegan pulled the pie out from the oven (when it was done) and put it on the counter, Keegan turned to him with a frown. "Just shut up and eat your pie."

"Ooh! Don't mind if I do!" Ryuk reached his hands forward to grab it and then there was an unpleasant burning on his palms.

"YEOUCH!"

"Oops. Forgot to warn you."

"Did you do that on purpose?!"

"Maybe…"

--

Authoress Note: Well I hope you guys enjoyed this little Extra chapter. Expect more. I think my writer's block is finally gone. YAAAAAY! Well anyways read and review. Thanks!


	33. Chapter Extras: The Last Level

Authoress Note: Hey guys! I got around to making another chapter extra. Now, I thought on this for a while and decided it had to be done. As of recently I've developed a liking for Matt lately and well…I thought I'd dedicate this chapter to him for just a bit. Now, technically he died in the series, but I thought I could work with this idea pretty well. As everyone knows, Matt was killed by a mob of Kira supporters (in the manga, I believe he was shot to death in the Anime…I don't recall off the top of my head so that's a goose guess).

For this Chapter I decided that Matt gets a small 'redemption' because I really don't believe the Death Note series focused on him enough (I found Mello had more work than Matt) so for that Matt gets a redemption chapter.

Aw come on guys, don't think I'm gonna leave Keegan out of this chapter. What kind of fanfiction writer would I be if the OC wasn't in any of the chapters? I'm not going to tell you how I 'bring' Matt back either. That's for you to decide; because it's not with the Life Script that he comes back, we'll just call it one of those 'I was dead for so many minutes' things. Well, anyways here's chapter Extra 5.

--

Let's Look at our Reviewer Line-up shall we? Gosh the numbers are getting smaller. D: I miss all my old reviewers. The story truly isn't the same without everybody.

_Yakurenazea_: No, Ryuk never seems to learn about pie. It's funny because Keegan tells him all the time. I hope you thought the idea of him not understanding the idea of humans proposing and marrying each other. I decided to take a unique turn on that and have him ask her about what it meant and stuff.

_Ailia Sparrowhawk_: Hi there new reviewer! Welcome to the line-up! Nice to meet you!

_Hi Kitsune_: Hey Gabby! Have a good time at Otakon this year? I hope so. Hope to see you again next year! Glad you enjoyed the story!

_Sharnii Brooke_: Hallo! It's been quite a while indeed! How are you? Glad to see you're not dead to the world, haha. Anyways, I hope you liked that last chapter and I hope you'll enjoy this chapter as well.

Thanks again to everyone who reviewed!

--

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Micha__el Phelps), belong to me. Thanks._

--

At least a year in the hospital, medical bills, insurance. It had taken him several months to come by that money…well, at least most of it. He was lucky that some of that staff at the hospital was even willing to switch around other insurances of dead patients in order to further accommodate his recovery.

Matt had been in the hospital for what seemed like…forever now. It had taken months for him to get back to his old self, recall everything that happened, and _everything_ wasn't exactly all he liked to recall. The whole Kira incident had been resolves while he had been out. The evening he arrived at the hospital, the paramedics handling his body had pretty much believed he was dead until someone decided just for shits and giggles to try and defibrillate him again to 'get some life back into his dead bones'. Who would have thought it worked?

"You know, in about 3 day's time you'll be out of here, sugar." His nurse explained. "You know, I remember the first day you came in here and how much blood was just soaked into your clothes…" she trailed off, glancing over at the young man while he fidgeted with his game system.

"You sure are more interested in your games than conversations huh? From day 1 when you woke up. Haha."

Matt had paused his game and looked up at her with a frown. "Can we make this quick, I'm on an important level."

"Well, aren't you excited that you're getting out in just a few days? You'll be able to go home."

"Home isn't exactly a thing I have anymore." He explained.

"Well, you'll figure something out, sugar. Until then you just take your time getting yourself ready for the big day. I don't know if I should even let you leave. The staff has come to know you 'infamously'…I'm still sorry about your friend, you know? They listed all of the criminals Kira had killed before they figured out who he was and arrested him (finally)."

Matt recalled back to when he first woke up in the hospital. Everything was a blur and Kaori was on her second month with him as her patient at the time.

--

'_Uhn.' _Matt's eyes slowly adjusted to the surroundings and the white light above him.

'_Well, mornin' at last, sugar.' _Next to his bedside with a tray of food was some nurse hovering over him.

'_Hn?'_

'_Hey, can you hear me?'_

'_Ugh.' _Everything sounded garbled but eventually he came to and looked around like something wasn't right. _'Mello…'_

'_What, honey?'_

'_Mello…what happened to Mello? He got away didn't he?_

'_Aw, sweetheart. The EMT's didn't see anyone else with you during that incident.'_

Matt lay there on his bed, somewhat numb, and he couldn't feel anything really. It must have struck him at a core point deep within him that Mello was in fact gone. He didn't know how but there was just that feeling in the pit of his stomach that he was.

'_Hon?'_

'_How long have I been here?'_

_Two months. You were shot up pretty bad. You had to have a lot of surgeries done to fix everything.' Kaori sat by his bedside. 'You've also been my patient for the past two months also. I'm Kaori, your nurse.'_

Matt grunted, trying to sit up. It wasn't any use getting upset over Mello now. If he had been in the hospital for this long without the knowledge of it, there was no point really. _'Is my game system over there?'_

'_I don't think you should be playing that when you haven't eaten solid food in quite a while. You've been on a feeding tube since you've been in your coma-'_

'_Coma?!' He asked, surprised that he had even been in one._

'_Well, yeah. You were shot to death. How you lived is beyond the doctor's belief but the staff keeps calling you a miracle. Now, I suggest that you, Mr. Miracle give me something else to call you because I know that's not your name.' Kaori stood up and watched Matt grasp for the remote control to the t.v._

_He flipped through some of the channels until he found a suitable network…well, something he felt actually worth watching: cartoons. _

'_Hon?'_

'_Matt.' He said to her, plain and simple. 'Just Matt.'_

'_No last name?'_

'_Nope.' He said, staring off at the t.v 'But my game system Is here right?' _It shouldn't have really been any of this woman's business what his name was (real or otherwise).

'_Yes, it's in your nightstand drawer.'_

'_Okay, that's all I need to know.' _He looked up as she passed his food tray over.

'_I got soba noodles for you today. This is actually from the cafeteria and not from the patient food rack. So you better thank me later.'_

Matt's other hand lifted up the top off the tray and glanced back at Kaori as she left the room.

'_Hm. Least I'll be out of here soon.'_

Soon didn't happen. Matt met with his doctors. Apparently since he had been out so long he had to go through physical therapy to see if his body had suffered any emotional trauma or damage to the nervous system from all of his injuries.

'_Mister…' _The doctor trailed off when gazing at Matt's chart.

'_Matt. No last name?'_ The doctor asked. _'Nurse Nakamura is this some kind of joke you and the patient are pulling?'_

'_No sir, he's very clear. No last name.'_ Kaori said in his defense.

It wasn't any of that doctor's business what his real name was anyways. Matt really didn't like his biological name much to begin with. Mail Jeevas. Some birth name. Matt was easier to comprehend and most people understood it.

'_All right Matt, you've been in a coma for 2 months now and we can't exactly release you as soon as you think we should.' _The doctor deliberated to him and Matt's brow quirked. Where were his goggles when he wanted to wear them?

Kaori glanced at Matt, seeing the look of disdain for the doctor, and she corrected the man immediately. _'I all ready informed him of the situation, sir.' _

'_Very well then. Mr. Matt, you may have to go through physical therapy to ensure that you haven't suffered any permanent damage from your attack.' _The doctor said, putting everything into a quick summarization.

'_So I'm…stuck here?' _Matt said, unimpressed by the outcome. _'So I'm fucked basically?'_

'_Ahem!' _Kaori cleared her throat at him and Matt frowned.

'_If that's the way you like to put it into perspective for yourself, I guess you can say that for the time being. But it is necessary I'm afraid. If you have any questions Kaori will take care of them for you, Mr. Matt. I'll be by later to check on you and get you prepped for physical therapy.' _The doctor turned his back and Matt watched as he walked off.

--

So for the next several months, Matt went through what he called 'unnecessary' therapy while in the hospital.

Every day at some obscene hour in the morning, approximately 7:00 a.m (because Matt preferred to sleep in), he got up and did physical therapy with Kaori. When the doctor wanted involvement, obviously Kaori made it very clear at some point (whatever that point was at some point it was not good) that Matt was NOT to be bothered by him unless the doctor had an important reason to.

--

So now that Matt was back in 'commission' he thought of if he would have had a terminal illness.

"Hey."

"Hm, what hon?"

Matt went back to playing his game in the hospital bed. "If I was here, dying in my bed would you have given me one last cigarette before I went?"

"Maybe…I've seen too many patients come and go and only a few I actually gave things to before they died here."

"Like?"

"There was an older man who wanted a few shots of sake before he died."

"Oh." Matt said, disinterested.

"Well, sugar, you ring your button in you need anything." Kaori turned to leave the room before pausing at the doorway to look back at Matt playing his game.

His face contorted into frustration slightly at his game.

"You know, that move works better if you use the object you got in the last dungeon. My son plays that game all the time."

Matt's head shot up from the game and he stared after the nurse with annoyed look. "Pfft. I think I know what I'm doing. I've beaten this thing before."

--

"Well, Matt, I believe that you should consider yourself lucky." The nurse at the front desk explained to him. "We had to do a lot to keep your poor ass under the desk."

Matt put his goggled back on. "Yeah, I know. Kaori told me." He said, pulling out his game system. "Got any spare batteries back there?" He asked.

"This is the last time I do this for you, and I don't want to see you back here again after all the time you spent here." She reached into her desk and pulled out a couple batteries to

"I'll try not to." He said, taking the batteries from her. "Now, they had your laundry all done before you woke up from your coma months ago. What you came in wearing you'll go out wearing."

"I'm wearing it right now…"

"Not the point, that was all cleaned for you and patched up. You'd better be thankful."

"…Yes ma'am." He grumbled, taking his game system in hand and turned to flop down in a wheelchair. "You wanna wheel me out, It's standard protocol I know."

"I'll get Kaori, because you need to leave before I lose my mind with you here."

Matt smirked, she didn't like him very much. _'Her life must be pretty miserable in this place. Wonder how many patients died on her.'_

His game system in hand, fresh batteries in the power slot, Matt sat patiently in the wheelchair until Kaori came to stand in front of him. "You're giving the Head Nurse a hard time you know."

"She doesn't like me very much, I don't care really." He said, looking up at her. "Are you ready to let me go?"

"Ha! Knowing you? Not really. I'd much rather not sugar. I've come to know you pretty well since you've been here." Her hands on her hips. "I guess I have no choice though do I?"

"I suppose not. I guess you'll miss me? That'd be a shock. It didn't seem like anybody missed me when I died." He explained, playing his game again.

"Well…" She began rolling him towards the automatic doors. "Sugar, people don't surprise me anymore nowadays, be lucky you're one of the few that did. You came back to life. That should matter to some degree. Somebody must have been looking out for you."

They stopped at the door and Matt got up from the wheelchair. "I know you've been hiding that box of cigarettes for me…so hand it over before I go."

"Some sharp eyes you got."

He held his one hand out, the other on his game system (with it paused of course). She handed him the box. "I swiped this off a lung cancer patient getting a tracheotomy because he won't quit smoking. You don't end up like him now, promise me?"

"Whatever."

--

"Is there any particular reason why you 'kidnapped' me, took me through the shinigami realm, and made us end up back in Japan?" Keegan asked, while Ryuk leaned back against the bench they were sitting on.

"Simply 'cause I can." Ryuk answered her. "I get homesick ya know. I AM a shinigami. I speak Japanese fluently-"

"You know English too asshole." Keegan growled at him.

"Yeah, I do. I can write in English and Japanese, but I prefer English. That's why in my Death Note, all the rules are in English. It's the most popular and well known language in the world."

"Yeah, English is also one of the hardest too. Japanese is like right under it." Keegan slumped down on the bench. "So are we doing anything exactly?"

"Aw come on, you kinda did something when we got here." Ryuk grinned.

"Puking in a trashcan doesn't count."

"But you look so cute when you do, eh little gaijin?" Ryuk laughed.

"Oh screw you!" Keegan snapped.

"Hey, you spew your trash all the time whenever I take us to and from the shinigami realm." Ryuk argued.

"If you haven't noticed, each time we go from there to anywhere else it feels like I die a little inside each time and maybe THAT's why I feel-"

He cut her off suddenly, looking somewhat surprised by the sight he saw walking down the street. "That guy was supposed to be dead." Ryuk said, confused at the circumstances.

Low and behold, Matt strolling down the sidewalk with his game system in one hand and a lit cigarette in the other.

"Ryuk? You know that guy?"

"I think he's well acquainted with Near." Ryuk grinned. "I think somehow he cheated Death…Keegan, did you revive him with The Life Script?"

"What are you talking about?" Keegan asked him, annoyed now. "The Life Script is in my drawer back home."

"I smuggled it along just in case…" He grinned, pulling it out form his jacket.

"If you had brought your bike with you here I would have hopped on it and ran it into a mailbox." Keegan threatened. "But It's not here…so it wouldn't make sense to."

She snatched the white notebook from him with a scowl. "I wonder how many times I have to keep reminding you what an asshole you are."

"Oh, a bunch more times." He grinned. "Let me explain some things to you. Near grew up in this really weird place where smart kids go to. If you recall, we visited the great L's gravesite. Near, L, and this guy are all connected. There were a couple others too but that's basically it in a nutshell."

"And your point is?" Keegan asked.

"Well, it's just that he was supposed to be dead but he isn't. Light would know obviously."

"Don't mention him, I'm still getting over the fact I got the crap beat outta me by him."

"Sure you don't regret bringing him back?" Ryuk asked her.

"Hell no! He deserves to suffer for every last person he killed. Even if they were criminals…he was a madman and a 'death penalty' would have been too easy for him."

"You won't stop to anyone's level no matter what, eh Keegan?"

"Quiet, that guys coming this way."

--

Matt, though preoccupied with his game and cigarette has stopped and looked up at the couple kinda…arguing in the middle of the street. Was it arguing? Whatever it was, it was annoying and Matt just wanted some peace and quiet with his game.

"Shouldn't you two get a room?" He asked, passing between the two.

Ryuk suddenly grinned and Keegan growled. "WE ARE NOT MAKING OUT IN AN ELEVATOR!!!"

Matt stopped, suddenly interested in this argument. Maybe he'd eavesdrop. Before he could even do so, Keegan saw him and shouted out. "GET THE HELL OUTTA HERE OR I'LL KICK YOUR ASS!"

"Whoa…" Matt muttered, "Excuse me."

"Yeah that's right excuse you!" Keegan called after him.

"That's it Keegan, draw MORE attention to us. It's cool." Ryuk drawled sarcastically with a grin.

Matt once again stopped dead in his tracks and turned to look at the couple. "Do you have a problem with me being around?"

Keegan's eyes narrowed. "No, but I don't appreciate eavesdroppers. It's rude and what we're arguing about is none of your business."

As Ryuk stared further at Matt, he read his life-span several times. It couldn't be right. It just couldn't have been. Mail Jeevas was supposed to be dead and buried six feet under by now. Something wasn't right. "Where did you just come from, pal?" He asked the other human suddenly.

"What's it to you?" Matt asked. "Then again…that's none of your business either." He smirked at Keegan from her earlier remark. "You wanna go pal?" Keegan growled.

"Just curious. You just look like…I dunno, you came back from the brink of death or something." Ryuk grinned. "But then again, what do I know? I'm just some nosy guy."

"Let me at him!" Keegan snarled before Ryuk pulled her back, arms around her waist. "Stop flirting with him Keegan." He snickered. "You're not doing a good job. It's too obvious."

Keegan fumd.

"Okay, forget him. I'll kick your ass instead." He let go of her and ran ahead. "You'll have to catch me first! Nyahahaahah!"

"RYUK I'M GONNA KILL YOU!" She snarled, chasing after him.

Matt though was left somewhat confused as to what had just happened with the situation and turned back to look down at his paused game. How exactly had that guy known he had just gotten out of the hospital though?

He snuffed out his cigarette and then unpaused his game. Soon afterwards, the battery died. Matt stared at his game system with a scowl. _'What the hell?!'_

"Aw, son of a bitch."

--

"Ryuk, what are you smirking about." Keegan asked him as they walked along. Obviously her chasing him had tuckered her out and Ryuk could walk with ease now.

"Hm?" Ryuk turned to look down at her. "Well, that kid wasn't preoccupied with his game at the moment so…"

He lifted up the batteries with a grin. "I swiped 'em."

"And…the point of that was?" Keegan asked.

"He was on the last level."

--

Authoress Note: So there you have it, Matt got a redemption chapter. As to where he will go from there, who knows. Plus who couldn't imagine Ryuk stealing anything? Lol. Hope you enjoyed, read and review.


	34. Chapter Extras: Coffee Shop Chaos

**Authoress Note**: Okay everybody! Seems like the redemption chapter for Matt went over well. Wow. I'm really glad about this. Though, really only in the fanfiction world would Matt truly be able to be 'resurrected'. But I find that if I write certain instances just right it's not as cliché. So I really appreciate that everyone liked Matt came back to life. We probably won't be seeing Matt again, but if you REALLY want him back you'll have to convince me. Hahaha.

So then, the chapter extras are going well and I'd really like to thank the loyal reviewers that are still with me, the others are probably REALLY busy right about now. So maybe they'll come around again soon. Anyways, if you all recall I put a playlist in a chapter extra a ways back. I just wanted to inform you that there have been some song extensions to the 'soundtrack' for The Life Script and I'd like to repost them.

_Disclaimer: I own none of the artists or their songs listed below._

Kyrie – Yoshihisa Hirano and Hideki Taniuchi

Death Note Theme – Yoshihisa Hirano

The World – Nightmare

Shinigami Kai – Yoshihisa Hirano and Hideki Taniuchi

A Dangerous Mind – Within Temptation

Paint it Black *Cover – Inkubus Sukkubus

Our Solemn Hour – Within Temptation

In My Mind's Eye – Sirenia

Domine Kira –Yoshihisa Hirano and Hideki Taniuchi

Decode – Paramore

The Howling – Within Temptation

Famous Last Words – My Chemical Romance

Untitled – Simple Plan

What's Up People – Maximum the Hormone

Poison – Tarja Turunen

Frozen – Within Temptation

Seven Sirens and A Silver Tear – Sirenia

What Have You Done Now? (feat. Keith Caputo) – Within Temptation

Helena – My Chemical Romance

It's Not a Fashion Statement, It's a Deathwish – My Chemical Romance

Disenchanted – My Chemical Romance

Surrender – Evanescence

Nemo – Nightwish

Brick by Boring Brick - Paramore

Moment – Tribal Chair (One Outs)

Indegluit Lieu - .hack//G.U soundtrack

Even In Death – Evanescence

So, as you can see the playlist has…lengthened. As I mentioned before, if you'd like to get a hold of these songs private message me or email me so I can help you out with them. I've not a problem doing that. I'd be more than willing to actually.

Anyways, let's get on with this next Chapter Extra, okay? Awesome!

--

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps), belong to me. Thanks_

--

_--_

It hadn't exactly gone the way Keegan had hoped. A coffee meeting with Gevanni. Well, his real name was Stephen, but Keegan just referred to him as Gevanni. Everyone seemed to. Ryuk had been reluctant to let Keegan go on the said meeting. Keegan couldn't blame him though; Ryuk was in denial of being jealous over those few guys that found themselves attracted to her. Gevanni wasn't one of them but, well, Ryuk just didn't like the guy. It was an irrational dislike, but he would have to get over it eventually.

"So, why did you invite me out here for coffee again?" Keegan asked.

The dark-haired SPK member stirred his spoon around in his cup with slight disinterest. "Not that I'm not concerned for your safety or anything but…is there anything you particularly see in the shinigami that you're dating?"

"Oh. So that's what this was about? "Near sent you to ask this question to me?"

"Sort of, we do have to keep tabs on you. You are Kuro after all." He explained in a low voice.

"I don't think anyone knows about Kuro but me, you guys, The Task Force, Mr. Yagami, and Ryuk. So it's okay."

Gevanni didn't seem entirely trusting of anyone else finding out, but Keegan was right in some ways.

"So, about this question…" She said, getting back on topic.

"Well…we're just a little confused. You're not worried that at any moment he could kill you?"

"According to The Life Script, I'm going to be alive for a very, very, long time." Keegan explained. "See, it naturally lengthens my life span."

"I understand that, but…he is a shinigami." Gevanni reminded her.

"_He _is my boyfriend. And if he wanted to kill me he would have done so a long time ago. Would you rather I been killed by my ex-boyfriend?" Her tone was livid and a little annoyed.

". . . . "

"I have _very _hot cider here, Mr. Gevanni. I'm not at all opposed to the idea of dumping it over your head."

"Let's be civilized, Miss Phelps." He heeded.

"Look, is this about the whole Kira incident? It's done and over with, and he's in jail. What are you guys worried about?"

"We're worried whether they can give him the death penalty…" Gevanni trailed off.

"WHAT?" Keegan said, her eyes widened in concern. "They can't. I mean…they saw what he did! Killing all of those people, those criminals…" Keegan looked furious.

"They're debating on it. For his trial. He'll deny everything. It's a private trial of course, the public won't know anything about it…but he could still get the death penalty." Gevanni explained.

"That'd be crazy…he doesn't deserve the easy way out." Keegan scowled.

"Is that why you brought him back to life? After the shinigami killed him?" Gevanni asked.

"It was to add salt to his wounds. If he had died he would have gotten out of it all. It was too easy." She clenched her fists. "He can't die again. I can't bring him back to life a second time with The Life Script."

"The only way that he could avoid the death penalty is if you present the reasons for being against it."

"Ugh…" Keegan frowned. "I really don't want to testify…the last time I was in a court room was when I was 9 and it was against the guy that killed my parents in the accident." She sighed.

Right as she was about to continue, she wasn't surprised by the revving of an engine outside, jumping off his bike, and looking with an irate expression at Gevanni's spot.

"My boyfriend's here…"

Ryuk had pushed the door open to the little café. "Hey, you said you'd be back in an hour."

"When are you gonna learn how to use a cellphone and text me?" Keegan grumbled.

"I play video games, eat apples, ride my bike, and spend time with you. Why the hell would I need to use one of those things?" He asked.

"You know, he makes a really weird human." Gevanni commented.

"I know…" Keegan sighed. "But I guess weird things are attracted to me." She chuckled.

"Hey, hey, hey…" Ryuk growled, pointing at Gevanni. "I'm not weird. You're the ones that are weird to me."

"Well, I should be going then. Miss Phelps, I do urge you to think about testifying though. You know where to reach us." Gevanni got up from where he was sitting and began towards the door of the café.

"Mr. Shinigami-"

"My name's Ryuk, dammit!" Ryuk growled at him. "Stop calling me 'Mr. Shinigami'."

"We'll be seeing you."

"Yeah, and tell that little kid to stay away from my girl…" Ryuk frowned.

Keegan gave him a funny look. "Seriously?"

"What? Near's weird…" Ryuk said, looking down at her.

"And? You're point? I think I could have told you that. Where did you say he was from again?"

"Some smart kid orphanage. I dunno. The only human I really pay attention to is you." Ryuk explained.

"Oh, right? And I'm supposed to feel thankful because . . .?" Keegan asked him.

"Because we're together . . .?" Ryuk grinned nervously.

"I suppose . . ." Keegan sighed. "Come on let's go home. I feeling you're gonna get pulled over by a cop and you'll need someone's driver license if you're going to get us home."

"Can I go over the speed limit?" He grinned.

"THIS IS A 25 MILE AN HOUR NEIGHBORHOOD, NO!"

"You'll hurt me if I do?" He asked, teasing her now.

Keegan's tone turned deadly. "I will _DESTROY_ you…"

The way she said that sent a chill through Ryuk's spine and he gave a nervous stammer. "I love you…?"

"That's what I thought."

_--_

"Tell me about the apple orchards." Ryuk said as they rode home.

"What do you want to know?" She asked him.

"Well for one, how close is the nearest one here?" He asked.

"I'm not sure there are any orchards in Ohio. I mean, it's not an overly HUGE state but it's not exactly…apple growing weather in the winter." Keegan noted.

"So, that long time ago when you mentioned apple orchards, you were lying to me?"

"I said there WERE orchards, I didn't say there were any in Ohio!"

"Tell me why I love you again?"

"I'm not Light."

"Oh yeah. Yeah. Right." Ryuk said, pondering over that issue.

"Listen, Gevanni was talking to me about Light today. He said they're debating on giving him the death penalty."

"And you're not happy about that? I mean-Oh wait. That's right, he doesn't deserve to die." Ryuk chuckled.

"Ryuk…what happens if Light is given the death penalty? Where will his soul go?" She asked.

"It's like I told you. Humans who use a Death Note, they go to Mu. It's not even purgatory Keegan. It's nothingness."

"And what if by chance the Shinigami King decides…Light's spirit should become a shinigami?"

"I highly doubt that will ever happen. Human souls do not become shinigamis." He assured her.

"Never?"

"Never."

"Good."

"Now that I've made you feel better, can I have a kiss?" Ryuk grinned deviously.

"RYUK IF YOU DON'T STOP ASKING ME TO KISS YOU I WILL END YOU!"

The shinigami's cackling resounded down the street as he blazed off on the motor cycle.

"How 'about now?"

"You're pushing it…"

"Come on..."

"I'll walk home..."

"...Dammit."

--

**Authoress Note**: Well another chapter extra up for you guys. Now as most ofyou know there is some speculation that at the end of the Death Note Series in the Relight episodes out on DVD, that after Light died he may or may not have become a shinigami. What a terrifying notion that would be though if Light became a shinigami. How would Keegan stop him then? I hope you enjoyed. They may be coming slower now. The writing muse has gone away again.


	35. Chapter Extras: Trial Shenanigans Part 1

**Authoress Note**: Okay. So I bet you guys are a little curious about that trial that Light is supposed to undergo in this story from last chapter. So I think I'll give the fans what they want and I'll indulge you.

Haha. So hopefully you will enjoy this.

--

Thanks for the new reviewers for your continued support of the story. Thanks also to those of you who go back and re-read it too. That really gives me a sense of pride and joy that the story still has the same effect and gives viewers a different take on how the story could have had an alternate ending. Finally thanks to those who favored the story recently. Your loyalty to the tale is appreciated.

--

Let's break down another Chapter Extra and surprise the hell out of you viewers out there!

--

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata. Any and all Death Note associated characters created by the two mentioned above clearly are the rights of their acclaimed creators. _

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps), belong to me. Thanks._

--

The Ipod radio was playing music like it usually did when Keegan cleaned the house. She put on a pair of old pajamas, pulled her hair up so it was out of her face, and put on a pair of sneakers so that she had the appropriate means to set to work with.

First Keegan would start with the hallway bathroom, take some Lysol wipes to the sink, and then put a bowl freshener within the toilet.

After she had made it neat and tidy for usage in case guests came over, Keegan next set to work on the kitchen. She vacuumed, swiffered the fan off, wiped the kitchen table, made sure to put all the dishes in the dishwasher, and then finally wiped the countertops and microwave.

As she came into the living room to see if Ryuk was anywhere to be found, she nearly had the living hell scared out of her when she felt the dust buster sucking on the back of her shirt. "JESUS CHRIST!" She exclaimed and spun to find the shinigami hanging upside down from the ceiling cackling wildly at her. "RYUK!"

"Oh! Oh jeez! You should have seen the look on your face! It was priceless!" He whooped and dropped the dust buster on the floor. "Revenge is so sweet!"

Her hands immediately went to her hips and Keegan stood there looking quite displeased with his behavior. "You know what? Just for that, no apples for the rest of the week."

His jaw dropped and Ryuk spun around in the air twice whining and wailing about 'it wasn't fair', 'you're so evil', and 'you won't torture me for that long'. Keegan had heard it all before and she tossed the swiffer at him as she had done the first time she had scared him with the dust buster.

"Then stop making that racket and help me clean. You know the house rules Ryuk. If you don't want to be boring and unproductive you have to at least do something." She turned her back to him to pick up the dust buster and stared at it in silence for a moment. "If you ever broke this…I'd be so pissed with you. You'd wish you were in hell." She chuckled morbidly.

As Ryuk crawled along the ceiling with the swiffer he looked down at her. "Why would I be sorry?" He asked her.

"It was my mom's." Keegan answered him. "It's got some sentimental value."

"I thought the picture had sentimental value." Ryuk said, confused. "You humans use more than one sentimental object to remember each other by? Boooooooring." He drawled out.

"You're not so exciting yourself from time to time Ryuk. I mean, I have a crucifix necklace my dad always wore and it's in my jewelry box upstairs in my room." She placed the dust buster in the closet where it belonged but took it to some of the furniture for a bit to clear up any apple crumbs Ryuk had left behind from his previous eating endeavors before doing so.

"I was gonna ask about that, but figured it wasn't something you might not have wanted to talk about." He said, dropping down from the ceiling.

Of course, as his shinigami self, Ryuk literally towered over Keegan and he couldn't help but find it funny at how small she looked when he wasn't in human form. "Wow you're tiny."

She smacked his hands with the rag she was holding and began ranting. "WILL YOU KNOCK IT OFF WITH THE SHORT JOKES?! I KNOW I'M PUNY!"

He grinned that wicked smile and patted her on the head. "Aww….it looks cute when it's mad."

"I will END you." She hissed.

"Yeah, yeah. When the shinigami king is breathing down both of our necks, we'll see then."

As Keegan went to the kitchen to get the wood polish from underneath the sink she heard her cell phone ringing and went over to grab it up. "Hello?"

"Miss Phelps?" It was Halle Lidner. Keegan hadn't heard from Near for a while now and she had only seen Gevanni for coffee a month ago…and how Ryuk acted in jealousy. Fond, fond, memory of that picture. Were her sarcastic thoughts.

"Oh hey Miss Lidner. What's up? Let me guess. Stephen told you about our coffee 'date' huh?" She chuckled.

"Yes, we heard about that. The boyfriend gets jealous does he?" She chuckled.

Keegan shrugged and laughed. "He has his moments. It's nothing too serious."

Ryuk poked his head around the corner inside the kitchen with a frown. "Is it them again?"

"Describe, THEM, Ryuk." Keegan said rolling her eyes.

"Near has something to speak to you about." Miss Lidner said to her. He said it was most urgent."

Keegan's brow rose. "Oh. Yeah sure."

She could hear shuffling in the background on the phone and Near's usually unfazed tone sounded in her ears exactly as it had from the day the SPK entered her home. "Miss Phelps."

"Agent Near." Keegan said, making herself sound humorously dramatic.

"Very funny…" He said, all thought Near sounded like he wasn't in the mood for games. "Something's come up."

By his tone, this sounded serious and Keegan drew more into the conversation. "Yeah?"

"Light Yagami, his trial starts in a few weeks."

"Gevanni told me about that when we met for coffee last month. I was afraid about that after the conversation." She said.

Ryuk looked unconcerned with the issue but when he heard Light's name mentioned he was more interested in the conversation now. "What about the great 'Kira'?" He asked.

"The trial. You were informed by Gevanni that there could be a possibility for you as a witness in a testimony. It would be a private trial, no media, and no knowledge of it. As far as those supporters of Kira know…Kira is dead as part of a suicide. "

"So in all, Kira never existed and was a part of everyone's imagination?" Keegan asked.

"Something like that, but Kira's trial is nonexistent. Understood?" Near asked her.

"Yes."

"So, what do you say to the trial, Miss Phelps? Are you in or are you out?"

Keegan pulled the phone away from her ear to look at Ryuk. "What do you think?" She asked him.

Ryuk was quiet at first. "Honestly? I don't care what happens to Light at this point. As far as my Death Note knows, he died once and I completed the contract I had with him for my notebook. It's your decision Keegan, and that is what I'm concerned with."

Keegan put the phone back up to her ear. "I'm in. I wanna see the coward's face one last time before they put him away to rot."

"Excellent. Anything else we can do to assure that you will be there?" Near asked.

"Provide me travel, an excuse, and a front row seat to be the one to put him away." She said.

"It will be done." Near said, his tone now amused. "You haven't changed much, Miss Kuro."

Keegan glanced at Ryuk. "I think it'd take a lot to change someone like me. Just name the date and time that my flight will be and we'll be there."

"No shinigami travel fee?" Near chuckled.

"Watch it Kid…" Ryuk hissed. "I'm the one with the notebook of death now."

"Shut up Ryuk…" Keegan said, chiding his behavior.

"Just send me the travel information as soon as you can. I've got to be off now."

"Until then Miss Phelps."

"Yeah. Oh tell Gevanni, sorry about the coffee threat before." Keegan mentioned.

"Will do."

As Keegan hung up the phone she looked back up at Ryuk. "Do you really want me to go through with this?" She asked him.

"Like I said Keegan. It's your choice." He shrugged with his back to her.

"Ryuk, is something wrong?"

"It's gonna be a little hard for me is all." He said. "Seeing Light again is gonna bring back unpleasant memories of just being a tool in his plan."

"You didn't see yourself as a tool with me." Keegan approached him.

"That's because Light didn't treat me like a person. Not like you at least."

"Well you said it yourself. I wasn't Light." She gave him a pat on the back. "Come on. We gotta finish these chores. Don't think I still won't enforce that apple thing."

"BAWWWW!"

--

As Near hung up the phone, Halle placed it back in the charger.

"She'll come then?"

"She's in it. There's just something…that's been on my mind." Near, usually not perplexed by something and glanced at Rester at the computer screens and went back to playing with some of his toy action figures.

"Rester. You have those pictures I asked you, yes?"

"All right here." Rester said, bringing them up on the monitor.

"Pictures?" Halle said in interest.

"Yes. Near looked up from his action figures and lifted his hand up to curl through that familiar lock of hair by his ear. "Look."

As Rester had the images zoomed in, Halle Lidner could clearly make out the images of Matt walking around in broad daylight with his game system. In different parts of the city but it was indeed…Matt.

"Do you think that…Miss Phelps-" She looked surprised. "He's alive…"

"No. Not for this case. Miss Phelps had no knowledge of Matt or Mello. Matt was the only one that has been seen so far in these images. It is him because I would recognize him anywhere." Near turned back to his action figures.

"It was a surprise to me too."

"But…how?"

"He was in the newspapers I know." Rester said, holding up several newspapers and Halle took one to look at. "Miracle Matt Survives Kira Supporter Rally Gunshot Wounds." She read on the article title.

"What?" As she skimmed along the article she read about how the paramedics were playing some practical jokes and had apparently brought Matt's pulse back unintentionally until it was discovered by another EMT."

"That's…cheating death."

"Exactly." Near said.

"Do you think that Matt will-"

"Come here? It's unlikely but-"

Gevanni looked at the cameras showing the world outside and stopped when he caught sight of the same lad in the pictures Rester had up. Matt was staring up at one of the cameras with his signature goggles on.

"He's here."

"He's probably here to question about Mello." Near said. Of course he seemed unfazed, but still it was a surprise that Matt would actually show up here.

"Should we let him in?" Halle asked. A small glimmer of hope inside of her wished that he would say that Mello was maybe alive but she knew better.

"Let him in." Near said.

As the door was unlocked, there was a silence until Gevanni heard footsteps coming towards the door. He of course armed himself and opened the door to Matt standing there playing his game system.

"Near. He's here, right?" He asked, paying more attention to his game.

"Yes. I'll have to search you to see if you're armed you know. Can't risk anything." Gevanni said.

"I was in the hospital for almost a year, living on the streets for a bit, stealing batteries for my game, I don't think I'd have time or patience to get a job and get a new gun…" Matt said, unimpressed with the understood hostility.

"No. It's all right." Near said, staring at Matt from across the room. "I know why he's here. Don't I?" Near said as Matt paused his game and in silence looked up at Near.

There was a pause before he lifted up his goggles and his eyes narrowed. "Mello."

"I'm sorry…he's not here."Near said. There seemed to be some sympathy to his tone, but at the same time…Mello had never liked Near much to begin with. "Truly."

Matt placed his goggles back over his face. "Yeah. I figured." He went back to his game and wandered into the room and plopped down where Gevanni had been sitting.

So it was true. Matt had hoped Mello was alive, the same as Halle had. She felt very sorry for Matt more than Near's supposed sympathy showed. She was most familiar with Mello and how erratic he could be. Matt was the closest to him and the shock probably numbed him from any emotional response.

As Matt sat playing his game system in silence from the world around himself, Halle walked over to him. "Matt. Would you like something to drink?"

"He can't stay here, Halle." Rester said, shutting off the screen with Matt's pictures on it. "I don't think-"

"Where do you expect Matt to go?" Halle asked him with a scowl. "I know this isn't the time to discuss something like this-"

The game paused and Matt, with his usually silent and reserved nature, gritted his teeth. "I don't need…sympathy because Mello is dead."

Halle grew silent and Near stopped playing with his figurines. "Matt."

"…."

"I don't think…Mello would have wanted to see you this way, especially if he was gone." He resumed play with his figurines. "So, in the recent events of the Kira saga against the Kuro campaign…" He paused. "The one called Kuro would want you to live life to its fullest in Mello's memory. Do you understand?"

Matt resumed playing his game. "Whatever."

"Justice will be served for Mello, Matt." Halle assured him. "We know who Kuro is…and Kuro is going to make sure that Kira pays for his crimes. Mello will have justice."

"Kuro gave L justice after all." A light smile came to Near's face as he looked down at his figurines.

Again the game paused and Matt frowned. "I'm getting sick of having to stop this level because I get interested in some stupid shit." He grumbled.

"Kuro wanted to visit L's grave…so they went and gave L some closure for the case." Halle informed.

"And who exactly is Kuro?" Matt muttered, playing his game and lighting a cigarette.

"There's no smoking in here…" Gevanni said in distaste.

"Let him have one for god's sake…" Halle said in defense as Matt puffed away.

"Kuro? Kuro is…a woman." Near answered.

As both former Wammy House boys resumed their playtime.

"Mello still would hate you now Near."

"I know."

"Good to see you, I guess."

--

"You sure you're gonna be able to handle this flight Ryuk?" Keegan asked him as they sat together in their seats on the plane.

"Yeah. I mean, I've gained some patience since being with you." In his 'Roy' persona, Ryuk glanced at Keegan and she shook her head.

"I know how fidgety you get and they don't serve apples on the flight. They serve like wheat thins and stuff like in 100 Calorie Snack Packs." She explained.

"Yeah? I can deal."

"On a…16 hour flight?" Keegan asked him.

Ryuk's eyes widened and he gulped. "Uh…yeah. I'll survive. I can do that. Heh."

"Righhhhht."

At least an hour into the flight, Ryuk and Keegan were bored with playing the challenge mode on Gardening Mama when the flight attendant walked by and asked them if they needed anything.

"Some apples would be nice…" Ryuk muttered.

"Hm?"

"Got any apple juice? He's got low blood sugar." Keegan said, hoping they did.

"Of course. And for you?"

"Just a coke would be lovely." She said as Ryuk fidgeted in his seat.

"This place is torture. I can't even get up and float around…" He whispered.

"Will you shut up? This is how people get marked as terrorists. Now sit up and stop looking like you're gonna ignite a bomb in your shoe!" She hissed in his ear. "You've been looking down at your feet forty times in the past hour."

"I'm ansty…"

"Ryuk…"

--

He drove her crazy on the flight for a while. They made several layovers in which Keegan took him to get some kind of apple related food product to shut him up as they boarded the flight again.

"The flight attendant keeps looking at you…" Keegan frowned.

"Jealous?"

"No. She's looking at you in that 'he's a weird lookin' kinda guy' way." She corrected him.

"You're not any fun…are ya Keegan?" He asked her.

--

When they touched down in Japan, Keegan was having a hard time trying not to punch Ryuk after all of the trouble on the flight. "I hate to fly Ryuk, it sucks much harder when you're sitting next to me making the two of us look REALLY suspicious, you know?" she asked him.

Keegan was tired and agitated and Ryuk was agitated and craving apples. "Well, what kind of place in the world doesn't serve apples?!"

"Planes aren't supposed to give food like that anymore because of budgets and because terrorists became part of U.S life after 9/11…I hope your shinigami pals didn't cause that by the way."

"We're not that smart enough to plan something stupid like that! You humans kind of ruin big plots like that for us when we kill people." He snarled.

They bickered back and forth until Rester came across them and cleared his throat. "Excuse me…Miss Phelps."

They both stopped and Keegan turned to face the SPK members. She wasn't too entirely familiar with Rester but he was one of the more reserved members of the group and he was a rather big fellow to hold back Mikami the last time she saw him.

"Oh…hey. Sorry."

"I wasn't aware shinigamis could get jet lag." Came Near's voice from behind him.

Ryuk scowled. "I'm in a shitty mood, kid. Don't push my buttons anymore than they're already pushed." He warned.

"Don't make threats like that Ryuk…it's wrong and you're just mad about the apple thing." Keegan corrected him.

As Miss Lidner came around the corner with Gevanni she immediately rushed over. "My god. You two look horrible."

Ryuk and Keegan looked at each other with some form of loathing at the moment.

"It's his fault."

"It's her fault."

"He fidgeted through the entire flight and it was SO hard for him to not look like he was playing with a bomb in his 'shoes'." Keegan scowled.

"They don't have apples on PLANES! It was a nightmare! The juice held me off only for a while but COME ON!" Ryuk exclaimed. "APPLES! I can't LIVE without them!"

"He's like a crack addict…" Keegan said in disgust.

"You two should get some time away from each other then." Gevanni suggested.

"Pfft. I'd love to…" Keegan said.

"We can't…I'm too overprotective…" Ryuk said, cursing himself. "The Life Script warrants it."

"Sucks on your part." Keegan chuckled.

"You're _real_ close…" Ryuk warned.

"For what?" Keegan asked.

"Do you think this is normal behavior between two abnormal lovers?" Rester asked Near, somewhat confused.

"This is a guy that came racing down to a coffee shop on his bike on a whim of jealousy. I think 'normal' doesn't begin to define these two." Gevanni answered for him.

"Miss Phelps…, Ryuk." Near interrupted. "As…entertaining as this scene you're making is, we should probably get the two of you a hotel room."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Keegan's brow twitched in annoyance and Ryuk immediately turned it into a kissing joke.

"It's like that time at the movies Keegan."

"A room with TWO separate beds would be nice." Keegan smirked.

"You're in a _good _mood today…" Ryuk snickered as they walked along with the SPK members.

"The ride back should be interesting…" Near said, curling his lock of hair around his finger.

"You're humored by this aren't you?" Halle asked him.

"Well…someone has to be."

"I would laugh but the shinigami is staring fire into the back of my neck." Gevanni said flatly.

"If I had heat ray vision I'd burn it off…" Ryuk grumbled.

"Stop it…" Keegan elbowed him.

--

The room was at the same hotel that Keegan had booked once before when she had come to Japan to stop Light. They bade the SPK members farewell and that they would be in touch. Keegan flopped on her bed immediately. "UGH!" she groaned obnoxiously.

Ryuk resumed his shinigami form. "Well, that was the worst experience of my existence." He said, sitting on the other bed across from her. "That sucked!"

"I'd rather go through the shinigami realm to get back…than experience THAT with you again." She said with her voice muffled into the covers of the bed.

"What?" Ryuk said. "I don't speak mumble." He informed.

Keegan lifted her head up. "I said, I'd rather go back home through the shinigami realm than do that again…on a flight…with you."

"You'd take puking your guts out over flying again eh?" Ryuk asked.

"Uh, hell yes!" Keegan said, her tone pointing out the obvious. She stood up and walked over to the window to look out at the city below and she heard Ryuk rumpling up the covers on the other bed to alleviate his boredom from earlier.

"Hey…" Keegan began. "I'm sorry…about how I got on your nerves on the plane." She said.

"Yeah? Well, I was being kind of stupid about my behavior." Ryuk said, tossing the pillows at the wall to see if they'd bounce off it. "Hmm…"

"So, are you gonna be a witness in the trial too do you think?" Keegan asked him.

"Well…I could be charged as an 'accomplice' to the criminal." He grinned. "Of course the human law system works differently than the shinigami system does." He said with a laugh. "It's weird. They got rid of the interesting ways to kill each other. Now it's just like poisoning them with a needle."

"They banned those execution methods after so long because of how inhumane it was to kill people like that. " Keegan informed, closing the curtains and flopping on the bed again. "I'm tired." She said.

"I hear ya."

Keegan felt pressure on the other side of her and Ryuk was lying opposite of her. "So, what is the purpose of sleep for you humans? Regaining energy right?"

"Yeah…and for you guys to sleep it's considered lazy. I know." Keegan said.

"Well, I never thought I'd say this but I'm actually tired from all of this plane nonsense." He said, raising his head up to look over his shoulder at her.

As she lay with her back to him, Keegan was quiet. "You know, you can hold me if you want." She sighed.

"Nah. I got on your nerves enough today. I figure you could use the space."

"…Hold me Ryuk. Or I'll die right now." She said, as a warning.

"Don't ever use that one on me. It's unbecoming of you Keegan." He rolled over on his side and his gangly arms pulled her close to him as they lay on the bed. "Besides, you die when I die remember? And that'll be a loooooooong time. Who knows when you'd die?"

"I'm looking forward to a long fulfilling life." She chuckled.

--

The next day was different in the hotel room. She talked to the SPK members on the phone for a bit and then mentioned something about meeting Halle for coffee somewhere.

Ryuk was snooping through everything in the room as his human persona before there came a knock on the door.

"Must be room service. I got you something." Keegan said as she turned to open the door and was met with a shocking sight.

"Hey wait…" she said. Standing in the doorway was that vaguely looking guy she recalled the last time Ryuk brought her to Japan on a 'field day'.

As Keegan and Ryuk were arguing that day, this was that random eavesdropper she had told off on paying attention to them. "Haven't I seen you before?"

"Yeah." Matt said with his game system paused in his hand. "Your boyfriend. He stole my batteries." The young man grimaced in annoyance at the memory.

"Or should I say shinigami."

"Who the hell are you anyways? Don't make me call my boyfriend; he won't have a problem getting rid of you." Keegan warned.

"Easy." Matt said, calmly holding up his hands. "Near. He sent me."

"You know Near?"

As Ryuk came from the bathroom he could hear Keegan and Matt talking before he got that eerie feeling and appeared behind Keegan at the doorway of the room. "You. You're the kid that cheated death…"

"I thought you looked familiar…" Matt said as he looked Keegan over. "Yeah. I remember."

"What do you want?" Keegan asked, her tone serious and apprehensive.

"Just to ask some questions." Matt said.

"If Near really sent you I guess you wouldn't have a problem with me calling him then, right?" Keegan asked.

"Call away. He knows I came here." Matt unpaused his game and began playing with it. "Can I come in?" He asked.

"I'll keep an eye on him…" Ryuk assured as he gave Matt another quick once over before he let him inside as Keegan pulled out her cell phone.

When Ryuk closed the door, Matt sat down in one of the chairs playing his game patiently. "Crap." Matt grumbled when he lost a life. He paused the game. "I can't smoke in here can I?"

Keegan hung up her phone after brief conversation and walked back over to him. "Sorry. No. I think it's a gross habit anyways."

Matt shrugged and went back to playing his game. "Oh."

"So, what did you want?" Keegan asked him.

"Don't make me steal the batteries again…" Ryuk warned.

Matt paused the game and scowled at him before he looked at Keegan. "Yeah. Um. What was it?" He paused. "Oh. Yeah. Kuro. Near told me you're someone called Kuro. You beat Kira." He said.

"Yes. So?" Keegan asked, her brow rose in suspicion. "What about it?"

"Hm…" Matt said, pondering on it. "You bring people back to life. Mello had a Death Note." He said. "Something about a shinigami." Matt explained. He spoke in brief sentences and fidgeted with his game system as it was paused.

"I'm that shinigami." Ryuk said.

"No. Another one." Matt said. "Look. I'm really craving a smoke…"

"Ugh…" Keegan sighed. "Fine, but do it on the balcony."

Matt stood up from the chair and went to open the balcony door to light up a cigarette.

"I don't like where this kid is going…" Ryuk muttered to her.

"I know, but he's got something important to say. Might as well listen."

"Kira. There's a trial. I want in." Matt said, turning to stare at them from outside on the balcony.

"Is that all?" Keegan asked, trying to wave off the scent of cigarette smoke. "Because I apologize if I'm on edge but Kira nearly kicked my ass." Keegan explained.

"You mean, Light Yagami. Yeah. Near told me." Matt said. "There's another reason why I'm here." He said, snuffing out his cigarette and coming back into the room with his game.

"Oh boy, here we go." Ryuk said as Matt approached again.

"Stop it…" She glared at him from the corner of her eye. "Yeah? What?" She said to Matt.

"You're gonna need a survival witness…" He said with a smirk.

"Is this supposed to cost me anything?" Keegan asked.

"Are you flirting with my girlfriend?" Ryuk asked, his teeth gnashing in annoyance.

"Ryuk…"

Matt refocused on his game. "Nope. More interested in my game actually." He said and then paused the game again before looking back up at the shinigami.

"You stole my batteries."

"Yeah. What are you gonna do about it?" Ryuk grinned.

"Uncool." Matt said simply before heading for the door.

"So…trial? You'll be there I assume?" Keegan asked.

"Yeah. Trial. Sure. Whatever." Matt said, shrugging his shoulders.

"Who are you again?" She said.

"Just Matt."

--

**Authoress Note**: This shall actually be a continued chapter. I figured that since everyone was curious about Light having a trial I figured 'Hey! Why not?'. So…I decided to make the chapter. I hope you all enjoyed this and I tried to keep Matt and Near in character as much as possible when interacting with each other.

Now. I figured that Matt, obviously homeless without Mello, will probably have to rely on Near for some form of benefits so that is part of the reason why I decided to have him go visit the SPK. Since Near is and Mello isn't I figured the least they could do is be somewhat civil to each other.

I felt that when I wrote this chapter that Ryuk was a little more out of character than usual but hey, if you were on a plane for 16 hours without apples, as a shinigami, I bet you would be a little crazy too.

For the record, no. I decided that since Matt came back to life, I wouldn't bring Mello back because Mello's body burned with Takada.

So hopefully you guys liked the chapter. So read and review.


	36. Chapter Extras: Trial Shenanigans Part 2

**Authoress Note**: Okay, so for some reason decided that apparently I had all ready 'made' a Extra Chapter 7…and it was all ready 'updated' into the story summary. Which originally it wasn't so I had to leave the summary the same when I had it updated FOR REAL with the last Chapter Extra. Wow. Guess I got a little carried away with that last chapter eh? Maybe it's just me but I haven't seen a lot of my other reviewers lately. I hope everything is okay with them.

Well for now they are on the WANTED list. They are now officially…Fanfiction…Criminals. DUN DUN DUN…No. I'm totally kidding. I just miss them is all. I do indeed.

…You guys wanna know the list?

YEAH YA DOOOO. Lol

_PiScEs-BlOsSoM69_

_Syrupdrip_

_Sharnii Brooke_

_Sahxyel_

_Jillian Jiggs_

_Michi-nin_

_KakaIru-luver_

_You're all wanted!_

Well if anything the Chapter Extras may be coming to an end soon as I'll have to eventually stop writing for the story when I run out of ideas. So be prepared for the soon-end of The Life Script. Forever. Well this fiction at least. Maybe after I run out of the ideas for this story I'll have more ideas for Origins.

I also realized reading back into my story I learned I left out rules 13, 18, and 19. So if you see some rules you didn't see in there before I apologize but I certainly didn't remember writing them. So I must not have If I did please let me know so that I can change them back. There has also been some minor rule editing and a full list of the 20 rules of the Life Script included in this chapter just so you all know.

Anyways…on with the tale!

Thanks again to the reviewers and to those who favorite the story.

--

_Yakurenazea_: Rules 6 and 10 are not the same rule actually. Rule 6 states that the Life Script is able to be destroyed but when it is destroyed by whomever destroys it, the Life Script has the ability to reveal the destroyer's name in a Death Note. So Rule 6 is a double-edged sword.

Rule 10 is unspecific whether or not the Life Script WILL be destroyed if it is used to save a shinigamis life. That's the only vague rule of the 20 entire rules.

--

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps), belong to me. Thanks._

--

_1_. Any deceased person who has their name written within the Life Script may be brought back to life.

_2_. The Life Script's ethereal power disrupts the energy used in the Death Note; therefore a Death Note may not kill the human that is brought back to life by the Life Script again.

_3_. The Life Script may only work on a deceased person after a certain amount of time has passed. The time limit is one week (due to decay factors and decomposition on the bodies of the deceased. Depending on the sorrow or other emotions within the user's heart, some cases are made in exception and a deceased person may return to life even if they are cremated or decayed beyond recognition. They shall be restored to their original selves they had been in life).

_4_. If a Death Note is currently being used to kill a person, the Life Script may interfere and counteract the Death Note's power. The Death Note's act of killing is immediately ceased after the targeted person's name is written within the Life Script.

_5_. Should the Life Script and a Death Note page come into contact with each other, the page is immediately destroyed due to the Life Script's ethereal energy levels being higher than a single page from the Death Note. (i.e: a mere fragment of a Death Note page would disintegrate upon any sort of contact upon it. An actual PAGE may last slightly longer but would have the same affects as the page fragment).

_6_. The Life Script can be destroyed, but upon its destruction by the one who destroys it, the destroyer's name immediately appears in a Death Note and thus they perish in the process (ultimately it's a double-edged sword concept).

_7_. A Shinigami may save a human's life with the Life Script without being sacrificed, unlike the Death Note (as seen with Gelus and Rem with Misa's life).

_8_. The Life Script extends the life of the mortal user with or without returning it to its original place of origin (i.e: The Shinigami World and the Shinigami owner)

_9_: A time and date still apply when bringing one back from the death with the Life Script.

_10_: A Life Script may be used to save a Shinigami's life, but may result in the Life Script being destroyed in the process.

_11_: The Life Script user's life span is blocked from being read by a user of a Death Note (excluding a Shinigami) with the ability of Shinigami eyes.

_12__: _If the name of a resurrected person is all ready written within the Life Script, a user trying to kill the same resurrected person may experience strange symptoms of the Death Note they are using begin to happen. Symptoms include ink bleeding from the pages from the name of the resurrected person just written down, rejection of the writing utensil or material substance used to write down said name, the writing utensil being mysteriously destroyed in the process, and crackling red sparks from the name written down.

_13. _The Life Script may only be used to save someone's life once. The result of it being used to write down the same person's name twice will take no effect.

_14:_ The Life Script has binding contract in it. The shinigami that gives it to the human user is forced to protect the user with or without the shinigami's own consent. In some cases, the shinigami willingly protects the mortal user of the Life Script. In the end, if the mortal user of the Life Script dies the Shinigami must bring that human back to life with the Life Script (failure to do so results in the shinigami perishing with the human user of the Life Script).

15:_ The shinigami whose bound to the mortal user of the Life Script may take a human form if he or she so chooses depending on the books dependency on the owner. Should said shinigami take a human form, the shinigami may witness unfavorable symptoms. Those include: vomiting, twitching, OCD, and occasional dependency for adrenaline rushes._

_16:_ The user of the Life Script may trade half the life span added on by the Life Script to them for Shinigami eyes without risking their normal life span. The use of Shinigami eyes is not just limited to Death Notes.

_17_: The Life Script's use of shinigami eyes is limited, use with caution. Excessive use will cause the use of the original life span not added on by the Life Script to be added to the power of shinigami eyes and the individual's life span will be cut by a third instead of a half. However the life span will not be added to the shinigami's and instead may be put forward into the power of the notebook in the case of mass resurrections.

_18_. The Life Script's use may be null-and-void if an individual is willing to die and ready to pass on into the next life. The exception to this rule is suicides(i.e #1 if an elderly man is ready to die the Life Script's power will not take effect because the person has accepted their death. i.e #2 a person whom commits suicide will allowed be brought back to life by the Life Script).

_19_. Possession of the Life Script is, like a Death Note, limited to one person at a time. The difference between the possession factors is that The Life Script can only have one owner at a time. Regardless of whether the notebook is stolen or 'repossessed' by the shinigami owner, the notebook cannot change hands until the designated owner of the notebook gives up ownership of it or dies.

_20: _All humans eventually die _however; should the mortal user and the shinigami in possession of the Life Script share more in the binding contract, the mortal user will die when the shinigami dies._

--

The trial wasn't for a few days, but even so Keegan was bored with being in Japan long enough and Ryuk could tell. Despite the fact that he himself was a Japanese creature of 'lore' as they called it, he still understood that Japan wasn't home to Keegan and she could never really live here if she wanted to.

It wasn't like Ryuk wasn't allowed to go off on his own every once in a while, he just found it hard to after meeting Keegan and decided for once he should try it out again. So one day he changed back into his shinigami self and took off, Keegan of course wasn't worried. Hey, he had to stretch his wings at some point didn't he?

That day though…

Keegan's cellphone rang. Ryuk of course was out wandering Japan to visit his old stomping grounds for the hell of it. He had told her he would though.

She picked it up and answered. "Hello?"

_"Hey."_

Matt's tone was unfamiliar to her over the phone but Keegan's brow rose.

"Um…who is this?"

_"The kid with the gaming system."_ Matt replied. _"I was over the other day."_

"Oh. Hey. Matt…right?"

_"You busy? I'm bored. I need new batteries in my game again…nobody's here."_

Keegan's brow rose. "Are you…at the hotel where the other members are staying at?" She sat up on the bed she was laying down on.

_"Mmm…yeah." _He had taken a long drag on a cigarette.

"Oh…um. Kay." She said awkwardly. "You're basically asking to come over here?" Keegan asked him, not too pleased with the idea but she didn't want to be entirely rude to the poor guy. Light probably tried to kill him. It was like Ryuk had said, Matt had narrowly escaped death. IT wasn't because of The Life Script. It was because of sheer dumb luck and the decisions EMTs made while messing around with his dead body. That must have been awful to find out about that.

Apparently that was what Miss Lidner had told Keegan about the ordeal Matt had been though.

She was silent until Matt's voice broke her out of her daze. _"Hey…you still there?"_

"Huh? What? Oh. Yeah. Sorry. wanted to come over, right?" She scratched the top of his head. "Okay. Yeah. Just…don't do anything to piss off my boyfriend okay?"

_"'Kay…Can we not play that dumb cooking game of yours on the DS?"_

Keegan's brow twitched in annoyance.

_'He is SO not fun to play videogames with. How do you HATE Cooking Mama?!' _

_--_

"That kid was over again today." Ryuk said, it was long after Matt had left though and he and Keegan were alone again.

"Which 'kid'?" Keegan asked. "Near or the weird one?"

"The one that smokes…and focuses on nothing but his game."

"Matt. Yeah. That's what he called himself. He said he was bored. " Keegan explained flipping through a fashion magazine. "Why?"

"Just curious. I mean, he's a weird one. All of those kids that lived in that house were weird." He said.

"So was it a boarding school or was it an orphanage?" Keegan asked.

"Eh? Wammy's House?"

"Yeah."

"Kinda both I think."

"Huh. Oh neat. Guess it was for kids deemed with 'genius' quality eh? Wonder if Mr. Yagami should have been sent there at an early age." Keegan said, the last part was bitter and sarcastic. "He's gonna get what's really coming to him. Do you think Mikami will be there?" She asked, putting the magazine down.

"Teru, Mikami?" Ryuk snickered. "Well…it's funny you should say that because Mikami is a prosecutor. The irony of it don't you think?"

Keegan shrugged. "I guess. I heard the guy didn't have a stable home environment." She explained. "He became one of those guys 'obsessed' with the end justifying the means?"

"Yeah. Something like that." Ryuk said, floating upside down in front of her. "So what did that kid come over here for exactly?" He asked, getting back on subject.

"Everyone was out. That's what he said, the guy didn't feel like looking for them I guess. So he came here. I mean, he seems like the type that wants to be left alone but if that was the case I guess he wants to be alone in his mindset but still wants people around him to make it seem normal." Keegan chuckled. "You know?"

"Nope. You humans are weird and strange like that. So I don't know really." Ryuk peered over at what she was reading and his teeth clicked together. "Don't they ever have articles about apples and stuff?" He asked, somewhat annoyed with the idea. How could nobody not make fashion out of apples?

"Well…think about it Ryuk. Apples are fruit, fruit eventually becomes rotten. Would you want to walk around in an apple shell that was rotten?" Keegan asked him.

"I guess not."

"Exactly."

"So, what did you guys do while I was gone that day?" He asked, curious.

"Well, Matt just sat here and played his game. He smoked a cigarette or two also."

She pondered on it for a moment. "Then I got out my Nintendo D.S and asked if he wanted to play a tag-team game."

"And how did he react to that?"

Keegan grew quiet. "He muttered something about someone named Mello and he agreed. Reluctantly…Sure do feel bad for him though. Something must have put him off because after we finished he left quickly."

"Well, you humans tend to be boring and strange anyways sometimes. So I wouldn't doubt that something would be on his mind."

"I wonder who Mello was…"

--

The day of the trial came. When it was the designated day, Keegan referred to it, a bit sardonically, as 'Judgment Day'.

Outside the doors of the private courtroom, Keegan paced back and forth, "I'm not sure if I want go through with this…I mean I've had to do something like this before when I was a little kid."

"Why what happened when you were younger?" Ryuk asked and she shot him a glare and he immediately remembered.

"Oh yeah. The crash."

"Yeah and the guy's claims that he SWORE he didn't know they were there." She said, the whole idea left a sour taste in the back of her mind and she eventually wound up trying to step away from the door.

"I can't do this…" Keegan said, stepping away from the door.

"Hey!" Ryuk snarled suddenly. "You're not gonna back down now just because of some remnant memory of a bad experience. That's not the Keegan I know and that's certainly not KURO-like behavior." He reminded her. "Get back here Keegan…get back here and put Light in his place. I didn't come down here to watch you rip him a new one again for nothin'!"

She glanced back at him and sighed, rubbing her temples. "Look, I know that this is a very, VERY, important thing but I'm really not feeling this right now."

"Miss Phelps? Are you coming?" The door creaked open and Gevanni stood there looking out at her and Ryuk sitting on the bench as she stood away from the door.

"Well-"

"In a minute." Came a familiar, curt tone.

When Keegan and Ryuk turned to look Matt was walking down the hallway with his game system in hand. "I need a minute with her."

Gevanni looked at him funny for a moment before he nodded. "Of course.

When the door closed again, Matt stood there, goggles hiding his expression and Keegan stared at him in silence.

"So?" Ryuk said with a grunt.

"You running?" He asked Keegan.

"Pfft. No." She lied.

"I don't pay much attention to a lot of people." Matt said, lifting his goggles up. "But you're running. And if you run, I'll hunt you down."

Keegan's brow rose. "Excuse me?"

"I'm not here because of you, or them, or anyone else." Matt said, flicking his game system off. "I'm here because Mello deserves justice."

Mello…

There was that name again and spoken with such…anger and almost regret.

"If I go in there…" Keegan began. "Will you tell me who Mello was?"

Matt only glanced at her for a moment before he put his goggles back on.

"Someone I knew…"

--

"Where is she? She said she needed a minute and I gave her one." Gevanni said to Halle as they waited for the doors to open again.

"You said Matt was out there."

"Yes."

"Well, he must have something important to say."

"She'll come." Near interrupted the conversation suddenly. He was holding the Kuro-Cat chess piece and the Kira chess piece in his hands. "She wouldn't give up after coming this far."

The doors opened and Ryuk had shoved it open, causing Gevanni to jump back. "Jesus."

"Don't curse, Mr. Gevanni." Keegan said as she came through the door. "My mother wouldn't have approved."

Matt was following behind. "Ah. You're here." Said Near as he looked up at Matt. "Welcome. Good to see you again."

"Let's get this over with. I got a new game."

--

As they were all seated in the designated places, Matt had to reluctantly turn off his game because those sorts of things were not allowed in a courtroom.

Keegan had turned off her cellphone and Ryuk was…well…doing what he did best. Hang around…literally. Upside down and on the ceiling.

There is always a calm before a storm happens and there was a brief silence and serenity before tension filled the room and Light was escorted into the room, in an orange jumpsuit, and shackled like he was some mad-man. Oh wait. Scratch that, he was a mad-man in a sense.

He looked, battered, tired, and had some desire to kill someone. It must have been hard for him to think about it because when it came to killing people he hadn't thought about it recently until he looked up and saw Keegan and Near in the room. To his surprise Ryuk was there also.

_'Kuro…' _He thought bitterly, glancing at Ryuk and then to Keegan.

His gaze turned to Near. "So you decided to have her go through it after all?"

"If you know any better, you'll shut up and just get it over with if you know what's good for you." Keegan warned him, standing up.

"Yeah Light, I mean can't be much worse than dying. Unless you wanna tell everyone what the realm of the dead was like?" Ryuk gave a sick and twisted grin.

Light scowled, looking down at his feet in silence, not wanting to really have to indulge them. It had been…leeching before Keegan had brought him back to life.

"Sit down, Mr. Yagami…" Keegan advised.

"Ma'am, I will have to ask you to remain seated at this time…" A private judge had been appointed and he had been paid an accurately large amount of money in order keep the whole trial under wraps.

As far as the world knew…Kira was dead.

As Light was seated adjacent from Keegan and Near, Matt raised his hand, lazily from the pew behind them. "Hey."

"Yes?" The judge asked him.

"Can I smoke in here?"

Ryuk snickered and Keegan turned to shake her head at Matt, almost apologetically.

"No. I'm sorry but that is prohibited." The judge answered him.

"Fuck my life…" Matt swore, leaning back against his seat. "I really just wanna play my game…"

"Try to bear with it." Keegan said and then looked up at Ryuk hanging upside down from the ceiling.

"Will you come down from there? The Judge knows you're there whether he can see you or not." Keegan said, tapping her foot in annoyance as she sat there.

Ryuk, though against it, came down and plopped in the chair next to her before he was in his human persona again and stuck his tongue out at her, making faces. She kicked him and he grunted in anger. "What the hell was that for?"

"Sit still…behave, and shut up until they call you up there."

"Miss. When the shinigami is called up to the bench I do expect to be able to see him…regardless of the situation."

"You will. I promise."

--

Light was cross examined. First by a prosecutor (that wasn't Mikami, thank goodness), then by Gevanni. Whom was a bit more organized than the prosecutor was in his questions.

"When you first discovered the Death Note, how old were you would you say, in an estimation?"

Light shrugged. "I was in High School. I was probably about 17 or 18-years old. I was in my English class."

It figured Light would remember it clearly. Since he never relinquished ownership of the notebook, he still had the memories of when he first discovered it and when he used it. Ryuk wasn't surprised by it.

"What did you do when you found it?"

"I thought it was a joke at first, that it was a gag gift someone had dropped. So I took it home with me. For laughs. At first."

"And what did you do when you arrived home with the notebook?"

"I sat down, did some homework and went to bed. When I woke up the next morning I tried working on some more homework when the news came on."

"What was on the news that morning?"

"There was some psychopath holding a bunch of kindergarteners hostage with several teachers. I didn't think it would work so for the hell of it I wrote down the criminal's name in the notebook. Minutes later he was dead."

"And what did you do after that?"

"I left the house…thinking I needed to clear my mind. I thought it was all maybe just a coincidence and that it wasn't real. So I wandered for a bit."

"Did you take the notebook with you?"

"Yes. But it was on a whim. I was going to test and see if it could really work, again. I didn't believe it the first time-"

Keegan raised her hand and the judge paused Gevanni momentarily. "If I may, would it be possible to cross-examine Mr. Yagami myself?" She asked.

_'What is she up to?' _Light thought to himself as Keegan stood.

_'What is she doing?' _Near pondered.

_'Keegan…you're either a mad genius…or you're really stupid.' _Ryuk's brow twitched.

_'Is she gonna make this quicker so I can play my game?' _Matt wondered.

"You're not serious are you?" Gevanni asked her.

"I asked politely." Keegan stated.

"I'll allow it. Said the judge. Proceed. You may sit down Mr. Gevanni."

Once done, Keegan stood and took the file from Gevanni to look it over. "I never liked law very much." She said. "So you'll have to excuse me if I haven't played the role of 'prosecutor' in a while since playing one in a school play called 'The Trial of Brutus' which was actually a parody with a court scene."

The judge cleared his throat and motioned her to move on. Keegan nodded.

"Mr. Yagami…when you took the notebook with you did it ever occur to you that it may have been wrong to take it at the time?"

"No. Because I was skeptical still of its powers." _'That's right. Play it up like I'm the complete bad guy now, Kuro.' _

"All right. I'll buy that." She said. "Understandable. However…when you saw it at first that it seemed to work…maybe. Did you ponder on the fact that perhaps what you had done was wrong?"

"I'm aware killing people is a crime-"

"On a moral standard?" Keegan asked.

"You like making me out to be the bad guy don't you, Kuro?" He asked her with a sneer.

"Your honor, strike that from the record as speculation." Halle Lidner commanded.

"So stricken. Miss. Continue…" He looked between Keegan and Light.

"Answer the question Mr. Yagami." Keegan ordered him.

"Yes…in the beginning." He answered, reluctantly.

"Where did you go with the notebook afterwards after you left the house?" Keegan asked.

"A convenient store. I went in to maybe get something and take it home with me. That's when I saw this gang of bikers. They were going to assault this woman right in front of the store."

"Was the owner aware of this?" Keegan asked. "Of the delinquents outside?"

"Well…" Light paused. He tried to recall. Sure the owner was at the counter but he seemed more interested in the sitcom on t.v at the time than on what was going on outside. "No. He wasn't."

"You took an oath under perjury, Mr. Yagami…are you lying?"

"…No." Light answered. "I had to stop the gang leader…otherwise he surely would have-"

"Assaulted her…yes. I understand…but how did you kill him? How did he die, Mr. Yagami? Did you kill him with a heart attack or write down a descriptive way for him to die?"

"Do you write descriptive ways for people to come back to life in your Life Note?" He asked, his tone nasty and condescending.

Ryuk gnashed his teeth in anger and Keegan corrected Light. "It's The Life Script. It's not a Life Note…remember that. " She said. "No further questions at this time."

"The court will reconvene after a 30 minute grace period."

--

"…Matt?" The judge said as he read over Matt's original profile and looked over at the young man sitting there fidgeting in his seat.

"Yeah?" He called.

"As one that experienced the Kira…community. I'd like it if you were able to give your statements…if you please."

"Well shit. This should be fun…" He said sarcastically to Keegan as he stood and she shrugged, giving him a short wave to wish him luck as Light sat adjacent at another table from Keegan, Ryuk, and Near.

Matt sat in the 'box' as it was called and Light watched as Halle Lidner came up and began her examination.

--

"You were an orphan at Wammy House originally, correct?"

"Yeah."

"I'll make this quick." Miss Lidner began. "What were you ordered to do the day that Kiyomi Takada was kidnapped by Mello?"

Matt shrugged. "Mello told me plain and simple. Distract the cars chasing him. So I did."

"Were you hiding out in one of the unmarked vehicles so when you were called you'd spring into action?"

"Yes."

"And what did you do after that?"

"I was cornered by Kira supporters looking to rescue Takada."

"And?"

"I got out of the car."

"Yes?"

"I don't remember anything after that. I just know that I was being pumped full of lead."

Keegan cringed at the idea and gagged suddenly.

"Anything further?"

"No. That's all I remember."

"No further questions. You may step down."

--

As Light watched Matt climb out of the witness box and sit back in his original place, Halle Lidner turned to Ryuk.

"We're down to two other people to question. Which of you two should it be?"

Keegan nodded her head in Ryuk's direction. "I think you should save the real guns for last. Ryuk needs to go. He's the 'verdict' sealer really. He'll tell you everything."

_'Why is she waiting to go last to place her verdict against me? Unless it's a trick and she'll try to get Ryuk to kill me again so she can bring me back to life as torture.' _Light thought as Ryuk stared up at the ceiling.

The shinigami hadn't been paying attention. "You humans are sooooo boring."

"Ryuk…" Keegan elbowed him.

"Eh?" He said, looking back at her and Halle Lidner standing there.

"You're next, Mr. Shinigami?"

"It been that long all ready? Wow. I'm soooo shocked and entertained."

"Just get up there and quit being an ass…" She said.

Ryuk rose from his spot.

"Will you please produce your Death Note." Halle Lidner ordered and Ryuk removed it from the clip at his belt.

"Here."

She took it and held it up. "Exhibit A. The notebook of Death. Of which if we touch it we will see the shinigami's true self."

She passed it around so everyone could touch it and see.

Ryuk sat in his shinigami form in the witness box, of course the judge was silent, and observant of the shinigami's erratic and…annoying behavior. Ryuk wouldn't sit still for very long. At this moment he was hanging upside down in the air.

"Mr. Shinigami, I suggest that you please refrain from any shenanigans in this courtroom while we're holding trial." The judge said, peering at him through the glasses. "You may be an intimidating being but the least you can do is show some respect."

"Nyehhhh." Ryuk stuck his tongue out and sat back down in the box. Even when sitting Ryuk was still taller than most people and Miss Lidner had to look up at him constantly.

"Mr. Shingami, what is your real name?"

"I'm called Ryuk. But lately everyone seems to like 'Mr. Shinigami' better. Thanks kid…" He said glancing at Near.

Near only smiled over so often. The last time he did so it was when he saw Light face to face in the warehouse. This time was another rare moment and he gave that same smile to Ryuk. "Don't mention it."

"Yeah…yeah."

"Ryuk. How did you first come across Mr. Yagami?"

"Well…" Ryuk leaned back and floated upside down for a moment. "I get bored pretty easily so I thought it'd be a neat idea to drop my notebook for the hell of it. I'd grown bored with my life where I come from and needed some action."

"Understood. But HOW did you meet Mr. Yagami?"

Ryuk grinned. "He found my notebook. Can't you tell?"

"Ryuk, stop behaving that way and just answer the questions." Keegan scolded from where she was sitting.

"Miss, do not make another outburst like that." The judge pointed his gavel at Keegan and she grew silent.

"Yes your honor…"

"Continue. Miss Lidner." The judge ordered.

"Now, Ryuk. Where did you personally meet Light Yagami for the first time?"

"In his room. At his house. Back when Souchiro Yagami was still alive."

_'Now he's gonna talk about dad, oh great.' _Light glared at him from behind the table he was sitting at.

Ryuk of course stared back at Light with little concern nor admiration.

"I've got a question for Light actually."

Light looked puzzled. What was Ryuk up to? If he had at first thought Keegan had a plan he would have never guessed perhaps Ryuk had a trick or two. _'Ryuk…what are you doing? Why are you here? Helping these people? They're all human. You don't care a thing about humans. Maybe Kuro is anything, but it's all an act. You're just waiting until you can write her name in your Death Note…you did the same thing with me.'_

"Is that allowed?" Gevanni asked.

"Does it pertain to the court?" The judge asked.

"Kinda." Ryuk replied.

"Any objections?" The judge asked.

There were none. "Very well. I'll allow it."

"What are you thinking about right now Light?" the shinigami stared at him. Reading his life span as he did so. Well. That was interesting. Ryuk grinned, not in the mischievous way he would normally. His grinning had a more sadistic feel to it this time.

Light only gazed at Ryuk in silence. Only it was that bitter sort of silence where Light refused to answer him.

"Mr. Yagami. Will you answer the question?" The judge asked him, tapping the end of his gavel out of distracting interest.

"No." Light answered. "Because I think Ryuk knows the answer already."

"Do you?" The judge asked.

"He's just getting scared. Though I don't think he was as scared when he was cornered in the warehouse." His grin, a bit more menacing than before. "Right, Light?"

Light rose up to his feet immediately. His dark almond eyes blazing at the shinigami from across the room. "SHUT UP!" He snarled.

"He's only speaking the truth." Keegan scoffed.

"I will not have disorder and chaos in this court room!" The judge roared, banging his gavel.

"Too late for that." Matt muttered, lighting up a cigarette anyways in the courtroom.

"Matt…" Miss Lidner mumbled in some frustration.

Gradually the courtroom settled down and they were able to get on with the previous procedures.

"Is there any further questioning for the shinigami?" Near asked.

"None at the moment." Halle Lidner answered.

"Step down Mr. Shinigami." The judge said sternly. "And I don't expect any more trouble caused by you. Paranormal creature or not…"

"The last testimony we need…" The judge read through the files. "From 'Kuro'…?" The judge began. "I am reading this correctly, yes?" He asked Keegan.

"Yes." Keegan answered him, glancing over towards Light.

"Will you please approach the bench?"

Keegan rose from her seat and did as asked before set sat in the 'interrogation seat' as she liked to refer to it as. When Keegan was ready Halle Lidner approached the bench.

"Miss Phelps."

"Miss Lidner."

"Could you please point out to the court what these are?" A Death Note and The Life Script were held up side by side.

"The white notebook on the left with the black pages is The Life Script. The black notebook on the right with the white pages is a Death Note."

"And what is the is the difference between these two notebooks?"

"There are many Death Notes because there are man shinigamis. But there is only one Life Script. As far as I have held the Life Script. I don't fully know its origins."

The notebooks were both placed back down.

"When did you first discover the Life Script? How did you come across it?"

"I was sitting at home one night. It was a little past 1 in the morning and I had gone down to the kitchen for a late night snack."

"What were you doing prior to then?"

"I was trying to work on an article involving the use of the insanity defense in cases involving murders."

"Again, how did you come across the notebook? The Life Script?"

"Ryuk wandered into my house. He actually dropped this notebook by accident. Not intentionally as he had done with the Death Note out of boredom the first time." Keegan answered looking over at Ryuk.

He didn't look up and only ignored his surroundings when everyone looked at him.

"After you learned the meaning of the Life Script, what did you do next?"

"Ryuk and I talked. We talked for a while. I gave him some apples in exchange for the notebook that he dropped. I thought he was a ghost."

"Were you skeptical of the notebook's powers when you used it the first time?"

"A little. I'm not much of a religious person so when miracles come it's a rarity."

"Whom did you first use the notebook on?"

"I went to the hospital. I wanted to try the notebook in a controlled environment. If it worked, it worked. If it didn't, it didn't. No big deal to me." Keegan explained. "I used it on a little girl suffering from leukemia and bone cancer. She wouldn't have lived long if I didn't."

She thought back to little Cameron Simpkins sleeping in bed and how tired and sickly she looked.

"Miss Phelps?"

"Oh. Sorry. Yeah. I used it on Cameron Simpkins. That was the little girl's name."

"Was the shinigami with you?"

"He followed me. To see how everything went on. He didn't believe the notebook worked either at first."

"I thought it was the dumbest idea ever conceived. But I took it anyways." Ryuk grinned and the judge banged his gavel and pointed it at Ryuk.

"Mr. Shingami…"

"…." Ryuk gnashed his teeth in annoyance.

For the next half hour Keegan explained everything from how she had used the notebook on a criminal in order to draw attention to herself, then how she sent out the messages, and finally to how she planned out how to catch Light.

"What was going through your mind when you went to the warehouse with us that day?"

"…I won't lie. I was afraid. Fear is in all of us. It doesn't matter who. You could be the greatest serial killer in the world…and even you would have an inkling of fear. Or you could be like Jesus himself when he prayed in the garden the night before he was to die. Sure. Jesus was scared to."

"I thought you weren't a religious person Miss Phelps…"

"I'm not. I'm using it as an example. The point is…we're all afraid of something. Death especially. But…I wasn't afraid of death. I figured…if I died I'd accomplish something and save a whole lot of people. I was more afraid I would get everyone else in the warehouse killed."

"But you had The Life Script."

"It didn't mean I still wasn't worried something would or could go wrong."

"In the end you chose to bring Mr. Yagami back to life. If he were to be offered the Death Penalty for his crimes Miss Phelps…what would you say to that? Would that make us seem exactly like him? Like Kira?"

"I would say that he doesn't deserve it. He died once. He nearly got the easy way out from being caught. He doesn't deserve to die. He deserves to live out the rest of his life in misery to live with what he has done every day and realize he screwed up in the end."

Keegan explained. "As for the Death Penalty? Well…it's one thing if a jury of people decide your fate. It's not up to just one person…because none of us are God. We shouldn't make these decisions for people…though sometimes there are people whom deserve to die for what they've done it's so disgusting…but it's not always the answer. It won't bring the loved ones back…no matter how hard you cry." Keegan thought back to the driver that killed her parents and her testimony in the courtroom at the time.

"No matter how much you pray to God…and no matter how much you hope. Revenge isn't the answer. So no. This man does not deserve the Death Penalty. He needs to learn his lesson…and live out the rest of his life in failure and realize that he messed it up."

Light stared at Keegan in some anger but he said nothing and remained silent.

"Nothing further." Miss Lidner said as she went back to her seat.

"I have decided the verdict of the accused." The judge said after reviewing over everything and he looked up at Light. "Light Yagami, I find you are guilty as charged of all crimes. Both as Kira and as the world's most notorious serial killer. The cause of the world's largest mass murder in history and I sentence you to life in prison, without parole, probation, or visitation rights. Be lucky Mr. Yagami. Had the last testimony not been in here…you would have been headed straight to the front of the line at Death Row. The case is closed."

As everyone began to file out Keegan stood and walked off before Light called out to her. "Why did you do it?"

She stopped in her tracks and the room went silent.

"Heh. Do what?" Keegan asked him a small smirk.

"Stop me…" Light asked. "What did I do to you?"

Slowly, Keegan turned to face Light and stare at him. First her gaze was cold and then it was angry. "You dictated who could live and who could die. Something only God can do. I'm not a very religious person Mr. Yagami, but I have a lot more morals than you do. Surely. I'll admit some people I could say deserve to die. But that is not for you or I to declare. You're lucky you're still alive because if it were anybody else…and you were in a room with a full jury…they'd give you the death penalty for sure. Then you'd know what it would be like to be 'judged'."

"Despite everything that has gone on…I feel sorry for you." She said, though her words were bitter.

Light's brow rose. _'Wait…sorry for me? SHE'S sorry for ME?' _"Why? I'm a historic legend."

"No. You're a man that destroyed your life. Everyone you loved and everyone you cared about. They're all gone. You will never see them again. You will never know of their fates when their time comes…and you will be damned to a life of solitude and isolation for the rest of your days. I think…even that would be worse than death." She said to him. "And I'm sorry that you screwed up your life…but as I said before. God made all human beings with free will…and you chose to misuse your free will. So I'm sorry for you. But you brought this upon yourself."

With that said she turned while Ryuk put an arm around her shoulder and glared at Light.

"You're lucky I didn't kill you with my bear hands also Light…because I would have done it too."

Keegan pushed him along so that they could leave the courtroom.

"Good bye Mr. Yagami. I hope you realize in the future…what you've done." Keegan said as the exited the courtroom and stepped outside.

When they were finally out in the open Matt stretched and gave an obnoxious yawn. "Well I don't want to fucking do that again."

"Matt." Keegan began, tired of the foul mouth.

"Yeah?"

"Shut up…"

He shrugged and puffed on his cigarette. "Okay."

"So, Miss Phelps. Now that this is all over and done with, what do you think you and Ryuk will do?" Near asked her.

"Don't say going to DisneyWorld…" Gevanni groaned.

"Pfft. Been there. Done that." Keegan said with a laugh. "Actually. I think I promised Ryuk I'd take him to an apple orchard." She turned to Ryuk with a grin.

The shinigami, now back as his "Roy" persona blinked at her several times before he twisted his mouth into a crooked grin and he yanked her closer. "I can think of something better."

"What?" Keegan asked him.

"Guess…" His grin grew wider.

The SPK members looked between each other in confusion and Matt pushed his goggles up, now interested.

"Don't you-"

She didn't get a chance to finish because Ryuk had indeed kissed her and she did slap him before he pulled away and made a run for it. "GAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"RYUK I'LL KILL YOU!!!"

"TOTALLY WORTH ITTTTTT!!!" He yelled out as Keegan dashed after him down a busy side walk.

Near blinked in confusion while Rester and Gevanni looked at each other to try and figure out if what had happened…really happened.

Halle Lidner was beside herself at a loss for words and Matt well…

"Fuckin' idiot…" He chuckled to himself.

That said Matt snuffed out his cigarette and turned on his game. Only this time-

The game system was missing its batteries. Again.

"That son of a bitch…"

--

Authoress Note: Whew! Well it took me a while to write this but I finally got it up! HORRAY! Well, the next chapter folks…will in fact be the last Chapter extra I write. So I hope you'll all be prepared and don't cry when The Life Script truly ends. Read and Review!


	37. Chapter Extras: Trial By Error Part 1

**Authoress Note **: Well everyone it's that time. The last two chapters. You know I've been writing this story for little over a year now. I started it first back in…the fall of 2008 and it's now 2010. So…this story is 2 years old now. WOW. I'm so shocked. I'm surprised. This is the final chapter: extra. The two final chapter extras that will fill in the unanswered questions in the epilogue. You know I figured once I finish this story I can focus more on Origins. I'm glad everyone was so supportive of the story even after it ended. I thank you so much from the bottom of my heart. Once again it's truly been great writing this story and I hope you guys will continue to support the Life Script for generations of Death Note fans to come. Not 'Life Note'. Life Script. So that you know.

I want to further extend my thanks to the reviewers especially because of all the care and support the story has been given and I hope that these last two chapters help clarify any questions that may not have been voiced for the epilogue.

So everyone, enjoy the first part of the chapter.

* * *

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps), belong to me. Thanks._

* * *

The shinigami realm, as stated before is a desolate wasteland. It is like a desert that is dry, with a stiff breeze, and no living thing exists within its bounds. All the shinigamis that reside within the realm are of course spread out and pay no mind to their surroundings. This was probably the third or fourth trip Keegan could remember through the realm.

Each trip there was less pleasant than the last but she had grown used to the feeling…of her stomach dropping, of puking her guts out, and feeling a bit emptier inside with each trip. She walked with Ryuk for a while, now back in his shinigami form, as they trekked along through sand and waste. The air had an unusual sort of taste to it than it had before when Ryuk would lounge here endlessly until he had dropped his Death Note.

Keegan had her hands shoved on her pockets, with the Life Script tucked under her shirt as they traveled along.

"Keegan…are you sure you didn't want to just fly back home on the plane?" The shinigami asked her as he floated at her side. Keegan had nearly forgotten he did have the ability to levitate and fly.

"I am NOT riding 17 hours with you on a flight again Ryuk." Keegan growled through clenched teeth. "I insisted on it to begin with anyways. I told you we were going back home this way."

"Yeah…but it feels kind of…I dunno…" Ryuk tried to describe how he felt about coming back here. "A little dangerous?"

"You're worried?" Keegan asked.

"Aren't you? I mean, that trick we pulled last time with that 'Spirit Council' bit won't work twice in a row." Ryuk told her. "That was a pretty good trick. Those two idiots Deridovey and Gukku may look smart but their brains are all gamble and no common sense."

"Not like you?" Keegan chuckled.

"Hey. I'm your boyfriend. Any shinigami has to have a high level of intelligence in order to achieve that or they're just really stupid." Ryuk snickered.

"Gee…you have both of those qualities to such a lovely degree." Keegan told him sarcastically while scratching her arm and then shuddering. "Did it get colder?"

She stopped suddenly when Ryuk grabbed her arm and pulled her back, his teeth gnashing protectively. "Hey-"

"Shut it…" He hissed at her as he stared ahead cautiously. As Keegan stood behind Ryuk she felt that cold shudder flow through her again and she turned to look behind her at a rather gruesome looking shinigami staring at them.

"Uh…Ryuk-"

"…There's one behind us isn't there?"

"…Yeah." Keegan said.

Ryuk craned his neck slightly as he turned to look ahead at Zellogi, a particularly Native American garbed shinigami with one of his hands replaced by what looked like a hook attached to a short wooden pole. "Well. Well. If I recall correctly…" Zellogi began. "The last time I saw you it was when you possessed that mad human that thought he could rule the world with your notebook."

The shinigami approached and Ryuk gave a low growl. "And the last time I saw you, you and the others were doing nothing but gambling your lives away."

"You sound like you've taken a different approach to the human world Ryuk." Zellogi said, ignoring the sneer in Ryuk's tone. "So what? You switched up for a different human?" He said, looking over at Keegan. "Female. Scrawny…" He squinted as he read her lifespan. "And an unusually long lifespan."

"Spit it out Zellogi. What do you want?" Ryuk asked as Keegan listened to the conversation. Whether she was afraid or not, she wasn't entirely sure what to feel because the whole conversation interested her.

The other shinigami paused and looked Keegan over again. "The others said they saw someone that looked like you a while back. Some kind of uh…surveyor?" He asked her.

"Don't answer that Keegan…" Ryuk warned her.

She frowned. Though Ryuk's efforts to protect her were valiant and he meant well Keegan didn't have anything to be afraid of as she spoke. "Hey, hunchback. That headdress come from the last shinigami that died or did you make it yourself? I'm told not everyone has the same intelligence here. Gee…that sounds so _human_." She made sure to say human with such insult that the other shinigami took notice to it.

Zellogi was taken aback by the response and he saw Keegan's brow had a cocky sort of quirk to it.

"Very spicy mouth you have…human." He inhaled deeply

"Oh. You're so smart enough to establish that? Your friends weren't." Keegan said, taking a step forward. "You have questions to ask don't you?"

"Ooh. Very smart too I see." He gazed her over once more, sizing her up, reading her lifespan. "…you just don't have an exact death date do you? I wonder why that may be."

"So what?" Ryuk asked.

"Ryuk…" Keegan said, holding her hand up in front of him to stop him from doing something careless. "I'm not worried."

"Why?" He asked. She glanced at him and her gaze shifted down to the notebook under her shirt. Keegan was referencing to the final rule in the notebook.

"Oh." He said.

Zellogi inhaled again and paced in front of them. "You know…there's been many a talk about something precious here going missing…"

"Oh please. If it was so precious it should have been protected better." Keegan rolled her eyes.

"So…by the sounds of it you apparently are in possession of it."

"Would you rather the truth or a lie?" Keegan asked him.

Zellogi pondered for a moment. "Well…I'm a shinigami that is naturally curious like Ryuk. So to hear about the banned notebook's use in the human world was…quite interesting to say the least. Then again it surprises me since how boring Ryuk is."

"You don't even know Ryuk that well to call him boring."

"Well…not like you apparently."

Ryuk's eyes blazed and Keegan held him back. "No. He's not worth it."

"Just let me kick him…" Ryuk pleaded. "It'll be quick."

"Now Ryuk…just because he's got a rude tongue doesn't mean we need to show him the same courtesy." Keegan advised, turning towards him. "We'll take care of this."

"If you are in possession of the banned notebook…you don't realize how much trouble you're in." Zellogi warned.

"Why's that?" Ryuk asked, suspicious.

"Well…not to put a damper on your human's parade but you've been observed closely by the Realm's Advisor. You know. Armonia?"

"Yeah. The one with all the shiny doo-dads. I know about him…what of it?"

"You may say…he's requesting your presences now that you are here. You, female-"

"What's your name?" Keegan asked Zellogi suddenly before he could finish the end of his sentence. She tapped her foot in annoyance when he had begun to refer to her by anything other than her name.

"What?" He asked her stupidly.

"_**WHAT**_. _**IS**_. _**YOUR**_. _**NAAAAAME**_?" Keegan said, a bit slower, a little louder, and with some obnoxious sarcarm.

"…Zellogi. What does it matter to you?"

"Okay. I'll call you Zellogi. You call me Keegan. Show me the same courtesy I show you. I'm not 'you human' or 'female' or 'it'. I'm a person just like you and it's just a bit of respect I like to establish when I'm introducing myself to someone." Keegan gestured a bit and gave the other shinigami an annoyed look. "Sound good to you?"

The shingami scratched at his headdress and sighed. "Very well…"

How did Keegan manage to have that affect on another shinigami? Maybe it was her attitude or perhaps the fact that she didn't seem to have any fear when speaking directly to a shinigami because she had Ryuk there. It could have been a number of things.

"This is no ordinary human, Zellogi." Ryuk informed him. "She's special."

"I can see that…" He said with disdain as Keegan's eyes narrowed at him.

"You were saying something earlier, someone wanted to see us?' She asked him.

"Yes. The Realm Advisor. Armonia Justin Beyondormason."

"Hella long name…" Keegan said, somewhat unimpressed by the way it was said. "And what would he want to see us for?"

"He knows we have the Life Script." Ryuk answered. "He watched everything...I know of him. I don't know him though."

"Well we don't have to go see him…" Keegan scoffed. "It's their fault for leaving it unprotected and-"

"If you fail…to go to see him," Zellogi began with a sigh. "You'll be put on trial and will most likely have to go through the shinigami levels of tortment. I doubt a human would survive long in one of those. No matter your lifespan length."

When issued under the threat of death…well more so death for Ryuk than Keegan she became concerned. If anything Keegan wasn't afraid to die because she had experienced it so much and the most extreme form was when she had been involved in the accident with her parents. Keegan had even taken on death itself when she faced Light Yagami but…losing Ryuk would be like losing a part of herself and she bit her lip before grabbing Ryuk's hand tightly. "We have to go…"

"Keegan…" Ryuk said with a growl. "I'm not going to let you do this-"

"Ryuk, I promised I'd protect you from losing your life this way and I intend to stick to it. If you have a problem it you can wait here while I go into the 'jowls of Cerberus' to make sure we resolve this issue." Keegan said to him. She was angry, clenching her fists and her voice shook. "So help me if I lose you…"

"Okay. Okay. Fine. We'll go." He told her, putting a hand at her back and glaring back at Zellogi.

"You will go on ahead until you meet Nu."

Oh yes. Nu. Only one rank lower than that of the Shinigami King. It wasn't hard to figure that she would be their to guide them to the Realm Advisor.

They went on for a bit, Keegan and Ryuk remained in silence as they walked together until Keegan heard something that sounded like a hiss and a worm-like shinigami slithered in front of them.

"Are you Nu?" Keegan asked.

The creature, adorned with many eyes with many different gazes did not speak, but only nodded to them and the flick of her tail signaled for them to follow her.

More silence. The more Ryuk thought about how much Keegan was willing to risk for him, the more he became concerned for her safety. What did she think she was doing? Going this far for him wasn't worth it? Just because the notebook said that she would die when he did shouldn't have meant taking it seriously. Yeah okay. So Ryuk was her 'boyfriend'. So he cared about her but…did she really have to go this far as to risk everything for him?

"Keegan…"

"Yeah?"

"Why are you risking this for me?"

"You know Ryuk…I'd rather lose my life than lose you." Keegan told him. She took his question to heart and reached forward to take his hand in hers. "Regardless if I had the Life Script or not."

"It still doesn't feel right to me."

"…It will."

The moment Keegan looked up she found that the shinigami in front of them had stopped and all of the eyes were staring at her.

"Yes?" She asked, somewhat awkwardly as she didn't know what else to say to Nu.

"…It is…strange. What I see in your lifespan. There is…emotion." The voice was a low whisper, almost a hiss in a sense that it could barely be heard.

"I get that a lot." Keegan shrugged.

"…you have some lovely shades to your eyes." Keegan complimented, trying to add some kind of respect back towards the worm-like shinigami and Nu's gazes blinked several times.

"They show I see all and am powerful. What do yours do for you? You only have two."

Keegan shrugged. "I don't know. I've never thought of it myself. I guess you could say…my limited sight of the world allows me to expand my thoughts on it and see more even if my 'sight' is limited." It was hard to explain since she didn't understand the question asked to her.

"He is this way. Ahead. Just under this cave entrance." The cave, Nu referred to happened to be dark, dank, and littered with rusty objects and tarnished jewelry. The structure around it was covered in rib-caged sort of bones and she gave a small nod to the many-eyed shinigami and pulled Ryuk along with her.

Before entering he gaze, Keegan took one more look back at the other shinigami and gave her a small wave. "Um…thanks. For leading the way."

"You need not thank me. I am doing this because I want to see what happens next. I may see all…but I cannot see the future."

"Something tells me going blind is in your future."

Keegan frowned at Ryuk's brash remark and chuckled nervously. "He's an asshole…"

"I know…" Nu answered. "I see. _All_."

They entered the cave. Keegan inhaled stank and it was a horrible scent. She winced as they crept inside. There may have been little light on each side of the cave walls but it showed little illumination and Ryuk's eyes were the only thing that glowed in the darkness.

"Is it me or does it really, really, stink in here?"

"Only to the mortal scents it does." Came another voice as they reached the end of the cave and Keegan observed a shinigami, attached to some kind of throne, covered in a lot of gold and jewelry.

"Yeah? Well try walking a mile in our shoes and you'd know what I mean." Keegan said, plugging up her nose by pinching both sides of it together.

Armonia, the Realm's Advisor came a bit more into their vision as the lights on either side of them lit a bit more. As the light clarified his appearance, Keegan got a better look at what he was covered in.

"You know, if you're as old and precious as all that jewelry looks so MANY explorers would have tried to strap you to their ships and bring you home you've got so many riches on you."

"Only fools make trouble with cursed gold. All of these are mine. YOU may not touch what belongs to me."

"Ew. No thanks. I don't know where it's been." Keegan declined, to assure him she meant having no interest in his precious gems. Ryuk snickered and the other shinigami slammed his hand on the rotted wooden table in front of them.

"Silence!"

"What?" Ryuk asked. "It was funny."

"Well, you are not here simply because something is funny. You are here because something serious is in the works. Now answer me this, the notebook of Life went missing some time ago and of course the most likely suspect in the matter is you, Ryuk." Armonia pointed a withered, ring-studded, finger at him and Keegan flicked her fingers against the table at this shinigami's attitude.

"Gold is only worth with how shiny it is. Yours is looking a bit tarnished. Is that why there are wasted remains of it outside?"

Armonia glanced at Keegan with disgust. "What does it matter to you? It was rotted. It wasn't worthy of me wearing it anymore-"

"Think of it this way then. The 'Life Script' was 'rotted' and nobody saw it worthy of being used. So what problem should it be if it was never properly secured to begin with?" She asked him, her hands pressing against the table and the shinigam's eyes, which were also jewels, stared at her in anger.

"What do you imply, human?"

"I _imply_ that you're no better in saying those jewels were worthless than saying the Life Script was as well."

"She's got a point there." Ryuk agreed.

"I did not ask you to speak, whelp-"

"Hey!" Keegan snapped, slamming her fist on the table and it shook. "Look at me when I speak to you…you tarnished piece of worthless pyrite crap." She insulted him, her tone venomous. Armonia glowered at her with those bejeweled eyes and she stared right back at him, just as irritated as he.

"You should be careful with how your tongue strays." The shinigami hissed at her. "You are not in familiar territory for mortals and it would not do well for you to speak out of turn here."

"Bite me." Keegan said, not really caring at the moment. "I'll show you some respect when you talk a little nicer." She explained to him. "I don't like rude people. This also accounts for shinigamis also considering you guys ARE a form of people also."

Armonia grumbled. "You came not here to argue." A sigh and then he removed a tarnished piece of jewelry from his body, which was covered by some kind of gold or jewels everywhere. "You came here because you have possession over an object that was originally property of this realm. It use has been abused, causing panic amongst some of our brothers and sisters…" He trailed off glaring at Ryuk.

Ryuk, of course not feeling mutual on Keegan's politeness policy, mouthed the words: 'Fuck you' to him.

Armonia was displeased and returned his attention to Keegan. "…You are strangely garbed. Mortal. Is it your skin?"

Skin? Was he talking about her clothes? "No." Keegan answered. "They're my clothes. Without them I'd be naked. Why is this relevant?"

"It intrigues me. The green, he referenced her sweater. The fabric of the skin covering on your legs…" Her jeans. He paused, trailing off when he caught sight of the bracelet she was wearing. This wasn't particularly her favorite piece of jewelry and Keegan was just wearing it out of a whim. It was that fake sort of gold you'd see when you went shopping at a Forever21 store and it turned your skin green. Which it sort of was in a sense.

"Ohhhh…." He said, preoccupied by the sheen of the fake wristlet and Keegan thought it odd that he was staring at it.

"Can I help you?" She asked when he leaned closer to observe the piece of jewelry.

"I've never seen actual modern, up to date, jewelry upfront from the human realm. Tell me. What kind of gold is that?"

"Um…the kind that turns your skin green because it's kind of cheap." She looked at Ryuk in confusion and he just nodded to her rapidly to appeal to the other's interest.

"May I…see it?"

"Sure?" Keegan said, lifting her hand up and showing him the piece of jewelry. It was interconnected by a plastic band holding the 'beads' together. The jewels in the center of the gold were fake onyx and of course Armonia suckered himself into being interested in it anyways.

"Hmmm…" He said, looking at it closely. Like he was determining if he wanted it or not.

"Um…the notebook. We were talking about the notebook." Keegan said, trying to get them back on topic.

"Huh? What? Oh yes. Yes. The notebook. Well…what you have done here Ryuk is most punishable seeing as how the notebook WAS in possession by the Shinigami King."

"The old man wasn't even doing anything with it." Ryuk said, putting the evidence out there. "It was wasting away. I was bored and dropped it…only more turned out than I thought it would."

"And look where it has you. A human carting you around like a mindless slave…" He said in reference to Keegan.

"Hey. Psst." Keegan said, gesturing the other shinigami to look at her. When his gaze was back on the girl she was dangling the bracelet in front of him and his gaze widened a bit. "Ohhh…so…unsual. Such a strange gold wristlet…"

"The notebook…" Keegan said.

"Oh. Yes. What of it?' He asked her, annoyed he was being distracted.

"What do you want with it?"

"The return of it. Then your fates will be decided."

"No can do." Keegan said. "The notebook has already determined me as its owner. It will not be pleased if I give it up so easily." She explained.

"Then you will both die."

"And then what?" Keegan asked, still dangling the bracelet.

"What are you getting at?" Armonia asked her.

"I think you know. Are you saying we will have to go to trial for this whole thing?"

"Hmmm…in a sense. Yes. IF your evidence and reason proves right and appeals to the King himself." His eyes followed the bracelet as Keegan moved it back and forth.

"And if it does?"

"He will spare the both of you. In all honesty…I can convince him of that IF you will make this traded bribery with me." He offered, holding his hand out for the cheap bracelet.

Keegan drew it away. "How do I know you'll keep your word?" She asked. "I'm told you shinigamis can be tricky. Ryuk sure was…in the beginning. But I've broken him of that."

Armonia pondered a moment. "You possess the notebook at this moment yes?" He asked.

"Yes." Ryuk answered for her. "Why?"

The other shinigami pulled out his Death Note and opened it in front of Keegan. "Rarely is this ever done but I will do what I can…" He wrote his signature on a single page in big letters and made sure that it was his name for the both of them to see before he tore the page out and handed it to Ryuk. "When on trial you must present this so that they know I agreed to this and that I did keep my word."

"If you just lied…" Keegan warned, before issuing him the bracelet. "I'm going to come back from wherever my soul goes…and I'm going to possess your body…and then I'm going to make you beat the crap out of yourself. Are we clear?" She asked him.

Armonia gave her a strange look. One that seemed genuinely afraid of that idea in general because Keegan meant every word she spoke and his hand shakily reached out to take the bracelet from her.

"Yes…and if you do come back…do you plan on killing me?"

"Please…you'll kill yourself before my vengeful spirit would even be through with you."

"…Agreed. You have my word."

"Good. Just remember. I'm coming for you if you lied."

"…Very well mortal."

"You are so awesome…"

"I know I am."

They left the cave after this exchange and as Keegan walked along with Ryuk he stopped her suddenly. "You know…this kind of thing. The whole human and shinigami thing? It happened once to another shinigami I knew." Ryuk explained. "I don't know what happened to her or how she died, but she disappeared forever."

Another shinigami? "Wait. This was another shinigami? And she fell in love with a human?" Just like Ryuk had with her and vice versa.

"Yeah…Her name was Rem. You remember that girl, Misa? The '2nd Kira'?" Ryuk asked her as they shuffled along.

"Yes. The annoying one? With the fake blonde hair?"

"Yeah." Ryuk said. "Her. The airhead. Well…Light tricked Rem. Rem was fascinated by love in general…and she ended up dying because of it. L…the one that almost caught Light before you, well…Rem had always hated Light. Not just because he was the way he was, but because he was using Misa to do his bidding, that he was manipulating his love for her. In addition to that…Rem's love for Misa became her downfall." Ryuk stopped short.

As Ryuk told her the sad story of Rem, Keegan was touched by the tale…and yet angered because Light had literally had this shinigami purposefully killed because she was interfering with his plans. "How did she die, Ryuk?"

"Light tricked her…into killing L with her Death Note. He told her Ryuzaki (that was L's alias) was going to torture more information out of Misa…and Rem fell for it. She wrote his true name in her Death Note because she knew it and she died. The only way you can kill a shinigami is with love." Ryuk explained to her. "Shinigamis are not supposed to interfere with human lives by saving them. I guess that's what the Life Script was created for. Whatever reason it was made…it had to have to do with that sort of thing."

Keegan sighed. "You know Ryuk, sometimes I question myself when I have the desire for someone to die. Like…say I see these horrific crimes on the news and I'd say at the television…that I'd hope they would kill the criminal for what they did. Then I'd realize I'd be no better in wishing that than the murder he or she had committed." The young woman pondered on her thoughts. "I guess…when I lost my parents I became completely numbed to death that when I wished it one a criminal…I wouldn't think about it…or care because I felt it was justified depending on the crime. But after Light Yagami decided to try and rule the world with that sort of power…I thought differently and…I became more respectful towards life because you have to live it to the fullest…even if your time is short."

Ryuk chuckled, a bit cynically. "I never understood you humans and the way you live your lives. It's…strange, but it's also interesting. Maybe I was wrong the entire time about you humans being boring. I mean…to some degree the way you live your lives is interesting."

"Excuse me…" Came a meek sounding voice not far from them.

"But I'm looking for my Death Note…have you seen it?"

Keegan turned her head slightly in the direction the voice came from and Ryuk tried to keep himself from snickering. "Pardon?" Keegan asked.

It was Sidoh. To Keegan he appeared exactly as he sounded. Like a bird. A very soft and timid bird at that. Scratch that. A mummified, timid, bird.

As Sidoh gazed at the two he realized not that long after he was taking directly to a human and he babbled incoherently as to what a human could be doing in the shinigami realm. "A human! How did you get here? Oh no. We're in trouble. The humans are trying to take over the realm, Mello's coming after me!" The other shinigami began flailing his branch-like arms around as he moved back and forth quickly.

Keegan watched this odd feat with some humor before she remembered something. Mello. Keegan remembered that name. Matt had explained it had been a friend of him.

"Hey Sidoh…" Ryuk spoke casually. "Keegan. This is Sidoh. He's a weakling, a coward, and I stole his Death Note so I ended up getting two Death Notes. He doesn't know this but we're actually gonna give his back to him."

"So you're always been a thief then?" Keegan asked him.

"Yeah. So sue me." Ryuk grumbled. "Sidoh." He called again.

The other shinigami made a terrible wailing noise as he ran back and forth before Keegan's leg stuck out and he tripped over her foot. "Wah!"

She frowned down at him and poked him with the toe of her shoe. "Excuse me." She said to him.

The other rolled over suddenly as he was being spoken to and she gave a short wave to him. "Yeah. Hi. You're running around like a maniac. Mind explaining yourself?"

"Don't take me back to Mello. He'll be angry with me…he scares me." Sidoh whimpered, his rounded teeth clicking together as Keegan stared down at him.

"Geez Sidoh, you deaf? I've been calling your name several times." Ryuk said, shuffling over next to Keegan to stare down at the other shinigami lying on the sand.

"Ryuk?" Sidoh said in surprise. "What are you doing back here? And why is this human with you?"

"Remember how you thought I stole the Life Script?" Ryuk asked him.

"…You did take it didn't you?" Sidoh said flatly, not happy with the answer he received.

"Yes. He did steal it. He gave it to me. We're trying to resolve that problem right now. Do you need help getting up?" She asked the poor shinigami. He was on his back and looked like a helpless turtle.

Sidoh, unsure of how to respond, lay there for a few moments blinking at her and Keegan waved a hand in front of his face. "Hello?"

"…You want to help me?"

"Uh…sure. Why not?" Keegan asked him, holding her hand out for him to grasp. "I'm not contagious?"

"And you don't know Mello? You're not gonna make me go back to him again are you?"

Was he actually that stupid? Or did he just happen to be that clueless? Unlike most shinigamis, Sidoh did not have an entirely high level of intelligence and it didn't shock Ryuk because he knew Sidoh that well.

"Um…Mello's been dead for a long time now." Keegan said.

"Oh."

The branch-like hand shakily reached out and Keegan pulled Sidoh to his feet. Which was odd considering how light he was to pull up. "…Thanks." He told her. "So…why are you here with Ryuk?"

"The notebook." Ryuk told him. "We got in trouble. Well…we were going back to Keegan's before we got into trouble."

"In other words, most of the community here knows that we're part of the turmoil." Keegan explained.

"Keegan. This is Sidoh. Sidoh and I are very well acquainted with each other. Sidoh's an idiot. Sidoh this is Keegan. Keegan is my new human. She takes good care of me and I'm not opposed to protecting her. So don't get any ideas…"

Sidoh blinked a few times. "He gave my notebook to you?" He asked her.

"No…he gave the OTHER notebook to me." Keegan clarified.

"Oh. Wait. The one that's missing?"

"Yeah. The one that's banned here apparently."

"Ohhh…then where's mine?"

"Do you have it with you Ryuk?" Keegan asked him.

Ryuk fidgeted a bit before he reluctantly pulled out Sidoh's Death Note. "Yeah…I got it." He held it out to Sidoh and the branch-like arms reached out to take it and Ryuk held it over his head. "Come on short stuff, jump for it." Hegrinned.

"Aw come on Ryuk, that's not cool. Come on. Gimme my notebook!" Sidoh whined.

This sight was sad to watch and a bit annoying at the same time. "I guess bullying knows no bounds in the shinigami realm either?" Keegan asked ryuk and he turned to look at her.

"What? I'm just playing with him."

"Give him his notebook Ryuk. He sounds like he's been looking for it for a long time now." Keegan tapped her foot in annoyance and Ryuk dropped it on Sidoh's head without thinking.

"Owwww." Sidoh whimpered as he plucked the notebook off his head. "Yay. I finally have it back. I can re-lengthen my lifespan again."

"Again?" Keegan asked him, unsure of what he meant.

"Well Keegan, I mean you said it yourself. Nothing is entirely mortal. The age thing also applies for shinigamis. When we feel our lifespan running out that's when we kill humans." He explained to her. "Or sometimes we just do it because it amuses us to some point. Like with my issue."

"I know…but you mean to tell me that Sidoh has been without he Death Note for so long his lifespan-"

"Yeah. It was running out." Ryuk said. "I mean…for shits and giggles I could have let him die." He glanced over at Sidoh skimming the pages of his Death Note.

"It's kind of sad." Keegan said. "That you guys have to kill in order to survive."

"..It's a way of life. Not many shinigami care about the lifestyles of humans like I do. Honestly Keegan…your lifestyle is the only one that matters. I don't care about the rest of the humans."

Keegan watched Sidoh silently as Ryuk spoke. "So when were you in the human world Sidoh? And for how long?"

"I was there for a while. I went simply because I knew Ryuk was the last one to steal my notebook." The timid shinigami looked up at her. "Why are you in the shinigami realm? In trouble I mean. And why did you help me up? I could have just been left there…"

"Well…" Sidoh was shorter than Ryuk, but still taller than Keegan so she had to look up at him when she spoke. "I guess you could say I'm a people person. I like helping others…even if they're shinigamis."

"…you helped Ryuk kill others?"

"Uh…No. But I helped Ryuk by giving him something he didn't have." Keegan explained.

"…The ability to not steal things?" Sidoh asked. It was plain to see that no two shinigamis were alike. Sidoh was very different.

"Well Sidoh. Ryuk didn't have any friends. So he's my friend…even if he's a shinigami."

"Isn't that against the rules?" Sidoh asked.

"Well…tell me, have you heard of a rule that says a shinigami can't be friends with a human?"

Sidoh thought for a moment and answered. "Well…no not really. I think humans are scary actually."

"…Do you think I'm scary?" Keegan asked him.

"No…you're nice. Which is weird. Mello was mean."

"No two humans are alike, Sidoh." Ryuk explained to her.

"Well…we've got to get going because metal head might try and call us back again." Ryuk said trying to usher Keegan along.

"Can I come with you…?" Sidoh asked suddenly. "Nobody likes me very much. And you've been nice to me so far."

Ryuk shook his head frantically at Keegan as she listened to Sidoh's request. For one thing Sidoh was a hinderance, he was annoying, and Ryuk didn't like him very much for several reasons. Not just because Sidoh was weak, but because he was pathetic and not very many liked him either. Which was tragic, yet true.

It was strange to Keegan how she found herself more used to the shinigami behavior than that of people back home in general. She found it strangely fascinating. Not just the whole aspect of the shinigami realm, but the actually residents of the realm itself. Sure. It was an unpleasant place but it was home to them. Just like the Human Realm was home to her. Sidoh's pathetic behavior mimicked that of someone who really did have that sad of a life where he had no friends and the least she could do was let him tag along. He seemed nice enough.

"Well…I don't mind. Ryuk might though." She told him honestly.

"I don't want him to come with us…" Ryuk grumbled.

"He won't be with us the entire time." Keegan said, taking Ryuk aside to whisper to him.

"Sidoh and I have our difference. I stole his stuff. How do you know I won't do it again?"

"You won't. Because I'm here and I'll kick your ass if you do."

"Grr…"

"Don't you growl at me mister." She scolded him.

"Fine. But I want him gone after he says 'he feels better'."

Keegan understood. "Sidoh, you can come with us. But you have to go after you don't feel bad anymore okay?"

Sidoh scratched the top of his head in confusion at the acceptance to his request and he floated over to them. "Okay. Where are we going?"

"Well…you tell us." Keegan said.

"Have you ever gambled before?" Sidoh asked.

"I don't like to gamble. It sets a bad example of how to spend money…and life spans. Ryuk told me you guys gamble your life spans away when you're bored."

"It's boring to even play anymore…I lose a lot. So I try not to play as much."

"Maybe you guys should try gambling for other things than life spans. The same way Ryuk likes apples-"

"Shinigami apples aren't for shit." Ryuk hissed. "They're just dry and nasty. Not juicy and sweet like Human Realm apples."

"Or chocolate." Sidoh added in.

"Chocolate?" Keegan said quizzically.

"Yeah. I like chocolate."

"…You guys sure are a weird bunch."

"Do you have any chocolate on you?"

"I wish. I could go for some right now. Is there such thing as shinigami chocolate?" Keegan asked Ryuk.

The other shinigami paused for a moment before snickering.

"What?" Keegan asked.

"Shinigami chocolate."

"What-Oh Ryuk! That's just wrong!"

"I don't get it…"

"I'll explain it to you later Sidoh. Ryuk's being gross."

* * *

**Authoress Note**: Well everyone this is the first part to the last two chapters of The Life Script: Extras. Hopefully you'll all get some comic humor out of this one to some degree because it gets really serious at the end in the final part.

I chose for more shinigami interaction with Keegan seeing as how she's seen nothing but human interaction for the whole of the story. More shinigami interaction was needed and I figured nearing the end of the story would be the best time and place for it. I went back in Death Note: "How to Read" and looked up many of the shinigamis and tried to get a betetr feel for them as I wrote their characters and how I think they could be protrayed as.

I was REALLY cautious about writing the character for Armonia Justin Beyondormason because: 1. He has a very long name. 2. I'm sur enot every shinigami would appreciate a human being in the shinigami realm. 3. Though no shinigami is entirely stupid, I chose to protray the more serious ones with ways to be easily distracted.

So hopefully this clarifies anything.

Thanks for your support. Read and Review.


	38. Chapter Extras: Trial By Error Part 2

**Authoress Note**: Well everyone. The final chapter. The FINAL Chapter Extra. I hope you all have personally enjoyed reading the story as much as I have enjoyed writing it. There is no returning to 'The Life Script' after this. From here on out I will be refocusing on 'The Life Script: Origins' so that I can get back into the spirit of developing out how the notebook was created. So I thank all of you readers for your continued support of the story and your enthusiasm in such a positive way that this story can continue.

So for the last time, and I mean it this time until I finish Origins. Enjoy this final chapter.

_Disclaimer: I do not own Death Note. Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takashi Obata._

_Disclaimer 2: The idea of the Life Script belongs to me. Please do not steal. Thank you. Any Original characters, Keegan Phelps (no relation to Michael Phelps), belong to me. Thanks._

They continued on for a while, Sidoh followed them for a great deal of the time. Keegan eventually had to explain to Sidoh the meaning of what Ryuk had meant by "Shinigami chocolate" and explained that humans, unlike shinigamis expelled certain wastes from their bodies. Sidoh of course thought it grossly disturbing but it was the least disgusting way Keegan could have pointed it out.

After a while Sidoh stopped where he was and looked around seeing that they were in fact a bit closer to where other shinigamis were at this time and Sidoh bowed politely to Keegan and explained he was off to lengthen his life span.

"Thank you." He said to her. "For you know, not being mean to me."

"Well…you're welcome. It's the least I can do." Keegan scratched at her head. "You guys have to…live too don't you?" Shinigamis, the more Keegan thought about it, were not that much different than humans. Certainly they all had very…human-like behaviors in personalities. Humans could be just as mean and disrespectful as some shinigamis here…and others were meek, weak, and kind to some extent.

Once Sidoh was gone Keegan stood once again, alone, with Ryuk. "What now?" She asked him.

"You wanna try your luck gambling your life span?" He suggested, curious what her answer could be.

Keegan glanced at him and turned staring at Ryuk for a moment. She pondered for a moment, her answer was important it seemed and she grinned. "How 'bout I show you shinigamis what Yahtzee is?"

"What is that?" Ryuk asked her, surprised.

"It's a game. Pick me out some shinigamis to play with."

"Gukku and Deridovely should be close by…" Ryuk mumbled. "Gukku always loses…" Ryuk gestured for Keegan to stay where she was and walked over to small group, crouching low so that when he got in he could see which shinigami were there. As before, Gukku and Deridovely were gambling as usual.

"I win again!"

"You son of a bitch!"

"Hey guys…" Ryuk butted into the argument and the two shinigamis looked up at him with surprise.

"Hey, hey! Look who it is? We haven't seen you in forever!"

"Ryuk! Last time we saw you was when we were getting Spirit Council violations…How did you get rid of that pest anyways?"

"Pest!" Keegan's angered voice shouted suddenly.

Ryuk grit his teeth, Keegan could never stay away for very long could she?

"…I didn't." Ryuk confessed.

When the other two shinigamis looked up they saw Keegan standing there, her gaze menacing and her eyes filled with fire.

"AH! It's her! She's gonna write us up again for lazing about!" They scrambled backwards away from her before she rolled her eyes.

"Oh shut up…" She groaned. "I'm here off duty. Can't I do that?" Still playing up her part with the shinigamis, she figured they were still dumb enough to believe her act.

"Oh…free time?" Gukku asked, shaking his head.

"Yeah. Off duty. What are you guys doing anyways?" She leaned closer to observe what looked like bones and small skulls in a rounded dish.

"We're gambling. You wanna play?" Deridovely asked her.

"Yeah, as long as you don't breathe on me." She sat down in front of them and gave a small grin. "You guys every played Yahtzee?"

"Yahtzee? Oooh."

"No. What's that?"

"It's a dice game. Got nay dice on you?"

Ryuk watched carefully so that Keegan wouldn't pull anything stupid, not that she would but well…one couldn't help but be concerned right?

"Somewhere…" Gukku rattled his head about and opened his mouth to produce several different kinds of dice.

"How many we need?" Deridovely asked.

"Only…6. You keep your dice in your head?" She asked Gukku.

"Well, yeah. Where else am I gonna keep them without them getting lost?" He asked her.

"Oh. Well I dunno. A pocket or something?"

"I ain't got 'em."

Keegan sighed and shook her head. "Okay. The rules are simple, you have to roll higher than each of the players. If you roll all sixes, it's an automatic Yahtzee and the game is won. Or the player with the highest number amount by the dice roll wins."

"This gonna take long?" Ryuk asked her. "We really…have to get going soon." He tried to hurry Keegan along.

"Just a minute." Keegan said, trying to hold him off for a bit.

"Anybody keep score? Here, pass around a Death Note page so we can all keep score." Gukku suggested.

"Everyone has to keep score?" Deridovely asked

"Yes…" Keegan informed, as if he should know.

So everyone got a piece of Death Note page, Keegan took out a pencil form her purse and dabbed the tip on her tongue out of habit and she wrote down number slots to keep scores on.

The other two shinigamis did the same and Gukku pushed the dice forward.

"Okay. So now what?"

"We roll the dice." Keegan said as she took the dice in hand. "Who wants to go first?"

"Me! Me!" Deridovely said excitedly. "I wanna win first!"

"…you can't automatically win." Gukku grunted.

"Yeah Deridovely that's stupid." Ryuk snickered. "And I don't play."

"Maybe you should." Keegan suggested.

"Nah. I'll just watch. I like to watch."

"Pervert." Keegan stuck her tongue out at him.

"Now that's just mean!" Ryuk growled.

So Deridovely rolled the dice. "Haha. 28. Beat that!" He grinned. "What are we playing for anyways?"

"Nothing. We're just playing for fun." Keegan said. "No gambling involved."

"What? Awwww. What fun is that?" Gukku asked with a whine. "Life spans are always fun to gamble."

"Well…you don't have anything to lose." Keegan informed. "What fun is it if you lose all the time? But if you gamble and lose nothing…then everybody wins."

"…true. Your roll." Deridovely handed the dice to Gukku and he grabbed them before putting them in his mouth and rattling his head about before he coughed them out.

"31. I beat you Deridovely." Gukku laughed, writing down his scores.

He handed the dice to Keegan who wiped them off with her shirt after they had been in Gukku's mouth. "So, where'd you learn this game?"

"Well, when you die you remember all of the stuff you did as a human, so I remember playing Yahtzee." She explained to them taking the dice in hand. Keegan rolled and the dice hit the dust bowl. Gazing inside, Keegan's eyes widened.

The other two shinigami leaned in and immediately grumbled in annoyance. "AW!"

"How the hell did that happen?"

"Yahtzee!" Keegan exclaimed happily. "Wow. I could never win at this game when I was a little kid."

Despite how much fun Keegan seemed to be having Ryuk felt the piece of Death Note given to them by Armonia Justin Beyondormason. "Ow." He grunted. That must have been their signal to go back and see him.

Ryuk reached for the Death Note page that had been given to him and sure enough…it was smoking in his hand. "Hey, we gotta go." He said to Keegan suddenly.

"Go? Go where?" She asked, looking up at Ryuk.

The shinigami indicated his head back in the direction where they had come from."Go. Us. Now."

"Sorry guys. I've got business to attend to now. Emergency paging system." Keegan sighed.

"Awww…come on. One more gaaaame?" Gukku whined.

"No. I can't. The Spirit Council is serious business and when they want business done…well it has to get done."

"Uh. Hey. Our game play isn't going on the…uh..violation thing is it?" Deridovely asked, looking around with concern.

"No. I was off duty. Can't write you up if I was off duty now can I?" She winked. "Okay. Now I have to go."

"Come back and play later!"

"…I'll try." Keegan said as she stood to follow Ryuk again.

"You wanted to see us?" Keegan asked once they had re-entered the cave from before. Armonia Justin Beyondormason was still obsessing over Keegan's fake bracelet she had given to him before he looked up. "Oh, hm. Yes. The trial will begin soon. Your defense shall be a line of shinigamis based upon their…eh…sympathy levels and kill levels."

"So…We get an unfair trial is what you're saying?" Ryuk asked. "What the hell kind fun is that?"

"Ryuk, you actually expect the both of you to be granted leniency? Honestly?" He asked.

"…No." Keegan sighed. "However the Shinigami Realm and its inhabitants must be held accountable also for this. You said our defense MAY work." Keegan recalled.

The bejeweled shinigami muttered something before sighing. "Yes. Yes. I did say that."

"So am I to assume you are representing us? That, or you're either planning on trying to make us look a lot guiltier than actually are." Keegan asked, the bejeweled shinigami, her hands pressed against the rotten wood of the table and Armonia Justin Beyondormason drew back as her eyes narrowed. "Listen you…"

"What are you going to do about it?"

"…I don't believe in a God or anything like that but I'm not opposed to the idea of reincarnation or poltergeist. You screw this up anymore than it needs to be and I'm gonna come back exactly as I said I would before and you're gonna be in A LOT of pain." Keegan assured him.

Ryuk jabbed his thumb in Keegan's direction. "Yeah. What she said."

"Shut up, Ryuk." Keegan said irately and her companion quieted himself.

"Yes Ma'am."

When said before, that there are two types of calms in a storm, before a storm and after a storm. The calm before the storm, as Keegan could describe it was when the trial with Light Yagami was going on, this could be considered the calm…after the storm seeing as how the 'court room' they were in the shinigami realm wasn't really…a court room exactly.

It was exactly as it appeared to be…a giant crater in the middle of a desert. Fan…tastic. Of course, like a rare few others before them, Ryuk and Keegan had to stand in the middle of it. "You call this a court room?" She asked him.

"Well the Shinigami Realm ain't all puppies and roses, Keegan." Ryuk muttered to her as they looked around the giant sized crater.

"Is there a specific reason why…it has to be a crater?" Keegan said, being overly emphatic about using her hands to describe the crater itself.

"I dunno. I've never been to one of these things." Ryuk shrugged, then glanced at her with concern. "I'm worried Keegan."

She turned to him to sigh. "Look…if this goes bad. I still love you no matter what happens, okay?" Keegan told him. "And Remember…it was a good run while it lasted."

It felt like forever until the crater around them kicked up a bunch of dust and Keegan coughed at the amount of sand and dust in the area. When she opened her eyes again she could see a few mangled looking stands and…a few of the shinigamis that they had met before along the way, and that Keegan had been previously acquainted with.

"Hey, Ryuk, you in deep shit or something and you didn't tell us about it?" Gukku shouted from afar and Keegan grimaced.

"Wow. This is a great way to get my cover blown isn't it?"

"Just shut up and ignore them…" He paused, "Whatever happens, happens. Okay?"

Moments later there was one shinigami that brought forth Armonia Justin Beyondormason's chair and he sat down in it close by to Keegan and Ryuk. Apparently he couldn't go anywhere without it. "He'll be here shortly." He told the two of them. 'He' being the Shinigami King or 'Old Man' as Ryuk liked to refer to him as.

"Hey, Shiny! Is the Spirit Council in trouble or something?" Deridovely asked and the bejeweled Shinigami looked at Keegan like she had something to do with this.

"Would you care to explain?"

"It's a long story. I'd rather not."

"This will not go over well you realize."

"Ahaha…" Keegan laughed sarcastically. "Remember what I told you about coming back to possess your sorry ass."

The bejeweled shinigami went silent and another few shinigamis filed into the other mangled set of stands.

Ryuk shifted his eyes back and forth. Sidoh? Sidoh was there? Oh god. This should be a long and sad trial. Ryuk thought.

Sidoh, from afar, had not a clue what was going on. Every so many centuries or eons shinigamis were summoned for these things and were not…'designated'. All shinigamis were up for judgment on issues like such. Sidoh of course had no idea what was going on. He stared at Keegan and Ryuk with fear…and some concern in those beady little bird-eyes of his andKeegan mouthed an apology and shrugged.

The chattering of the many shinigamis stopped and Keegan stood with Ryuk, and she could feel a sense of nausea set in. Her head felt light and she winced at a sharp pain in her head. "Ugh." She groaned.

"You okay?"

Keegan shook her head. "Yeah…"

"I think your body knows…he's here." Ryuk said, as the area went silent and what was once just a grey and often stormy looking sky…became pitch-black.

"He's here? I mean you know, him?" Keegan asked.

"He is." The corner of Ryuk's lip twitched. "I've met him before you know. That's how I managed to get two Death Notes at once."

Keegan turned to glare at him. "Oh, gee. Thanks Ryuk. This would have been viable information A GOOD FRICKIN' WHILE AGO!" She snarled.

He winced. "…Thought the fact I met him before might quell your nerves a bit."

"Damn it Ryuk!"

_**"State your names of origin…"**_ A booming voice stated.

Keegan was silent. There wasn't anywhere that she could see this…'entity' that called itself 'king'. So…how could she talk to it if it wasn't present…supposedly?

Ryuk answered right away. "Ryuk. You know? The cheat. The Thief. I tricked you outta 2 Death Notes?"

_**"Your name of origin is of no concern. I want the name of origin of the human…" **_It said in annoyance.

There were murmurs of surprise and Gukku and Deridovely looked between each other in confusion. "Human?"

Keegan turned to look at them from where she was standing and grinned. "Yeah. I'm that human."

They now felt extremely stupid she imagined. Keegan was addressed again. _**"I ordered you to answer my question, mortal."**_

"Keegan Allison Phelps. If you plan to kill me now I'd prefer you do it quickly…I've got some scores to settle in the afterlife when I return…as, something not as pleasant." She cocked a brow smugly

_**"Is that your name or origin or are you providing false information?"**_

"It's my name. It's the name I was given when I was born." Keegan said, angered now.

There was an easy silence before they were answered. _**"Do you know why you and the shinigami Ryuk have been summoned here?"**_

Ryuk scoffed. "Let me guess, I'm in trouble for stealing Death Notes again?" He asked with a grin.

"We have something that is of great interest to you…" Keegan answered.

_**"Correct. On the account that an artifact that belongs here…is never to be used." **_

Keegan tapped her foot. "You know…" She began a bit sardonically. "I'm under the impression this…" she took out the Life Script and a few gasps and growls were elicited in the room.

Ryuk glanced at it and chuckled nervously. "What are you doing?"

"Shut up." Keegan said. "I'll handle this." She held the Life Script up again for all to see. "I mean, what's a…notebook that gives life doing in a place that just…radiates death?" Keegan asked. "I mean, it seems out of place doesn't it?" she asked. "And…I'm asking _everyone_ in the room here. So I do expect some answers."

_**"You are not at liberty to be questioning such things."**_

"Oh, I need your answer too." She said. "Just so you don't feel left out."

What was she doing? Keegan was staring Death in the face…in all reality. Why wasn't she afraid? She should have been shaking, quivering, fearing for her life…but she wasn't. Ryuk had to give Keegan much credit for that. She had guts-no-balls. Was that the appropriate term? Light used that phrase sometimes occasionally. How much L had the balls to accuse him of being Kira…

This was Keegan though, not Light. Keegan wasn't jerking around when she spoke to The Shinigami King as she would…any other shinigami.

"I'm waiting." Keegan said in anger.

There was a long pause of silence before a sigh._** "The notebook of life, is an abomination that came about many centuries ago. How it came about…is beyond my knowledge-"**_

There was a sudden guttural snarl from somewhere in the stands and a few shinigamis had to move out of the way of a short, very hunched over, and…massively old shinigami that waddled his way around unsteadily. "_That is a load of fuck!_"

He was old…with an extremely ragged World War II, 1945, gas mask hanging off his face in a lopsided manner. He drooled…constantly, tracking it wherever he went and approached forward. "You…certainly **DO** know where it came from, and you left it there…_because_ you knew if you didn't… " There was a pause and the shinigami looked back at Keegan and Ryuk.

"_IT _would have come back for your soul…from wherever _IT_ roams now, you still have that inkling of fear in you…as do we all if…" A pause and the shinigami hocked several wads of saliva onto the sand.

Keegan observed him. Old, not just in appearance, but in age. He looked like he could break at any moment and he growled every several seconds and wheezed when he moved, breathing harshly, and drooling everywhere. This was not a shinigami she had ever seen before. Nor had Ryuk.

The Shinigami King of course did not take kindly to this interruption. _**"You do not know the horrors you speak with this blasphemy!"**_

Ryuk watched with interest as this aged and decrepit shinigami circled him, his torn, and aged death note, was just as old as he was and he dragged it around on a rusted chain. He looked Ryuk over and observed him before laughing. "HA! You have such room to talk, My King. You fail to recall, _I_ was there when the notebook was made…and I was acquainted with **who** made it."

A hush fell over the assembled 'court' and Armonia Justin Beyondormason scoffed at this withered old shinigami. "Your point being exactly?"

The older shinigami slapped him in the face with his Death Note with a snarl. "Hold your tongue child. I'll deal with you later…" He growled, drool trickling from the corner of his mouth whilst he spoke. He spit a lot too, Ryuk noticed. He must have been old otherwise the Shinigami King wouldn't let him speak.

"I was _there._ I know what I saw…and I know that this-" He approached Keegan and stopped, looking up at her. From what Keegan could see up close he was observing her…reading her life-span. He was looking for something it felt like. Deeper than a life-span. His rickety hands lifted up, shaking, from a palsy of sorts Keegan imagined, and he grasped one in both hands. "Hmm…" He pondered to himself.

Keegan held the Life Script with one hand as her other was held by this shinigami.

"Hey pal!" Ryuk said, protectively.

"Shh…" The old shinigami murmured, lolling his head from side to side before he let go of Keegan's hand and looked at the Life Script in her possession. "May I?" He asked her. "Touch it, I mean?"

"Don't do it Keegan…" Ryuk warned, not trusting of this old and withered creature.

Keegan looked over at Ryuk and then back to the old shinigami looking up at her. He was shorter than she was it looked, and he seemed to be in as much physical pain as he was mentally if he was this old and crotchety. Keegan reluctantly handed the notebook over to him and he flipped through the black pages before viewing over the rules. He laughed. "Ahaha. Clever one. Clever one." He seemed to be referring to another from the past.

"She always was with this notebook. Not once in all of her years did she ever use it to kill anyone." He read some of the names written within it and he looked at Light's name with interest. "Ohh…ohho yes." He laughed aloud. "Even the sinner cannot escape karma I see."

He turned to hand The Life Script back to her. "It's got part of her in it." He said to her.

"Part of who?" She asked.

_**"I forbid you to speak that name!"**_

"I advise…you not speak of her so…loathingly. You remember what she said, she would come back." He said with a sadistic grin. "She would come back my king and you would be in a world of distress…and hell. She said she'd make your existence a living oblivion if she came back. I think this…milestone marks an accurate prediction that her return will be soon."

There was silence still.

"Many, of you young and…impressionable kinsmen and ladies of mine I daresay you may…or may not know the legend of the Shinigami…that had such a love for human life…she once wanted to become as human as they were. Tragically this could not occur…" He passed around and spoke, gazing at everyone with contempt and a bit of bitterness. "And eventually…as the story goes, she made the book of Life." He said, looking back at Keegan holding the Life Script.

"I advise you in your judgments today, **strongly**, that you make the correct decision and let them go. For I fear what she may do to your souls if she returns."

_**"Just because this occurrence has happened means nothing, and you are a mad and aged creature…Kalverez."**_

He had a name now. All right. That was easier to see now. This, Kalverez, shinigami was just as fierce as his 'King' and took no delight in answering him. There was scathe and hate in his voice. "IT MEANS EVERYTHING!" He snarled, spittle flying around and he growled. "It means everything my King and you know it…Ohhh, ho do you ever know it."

He shuffled back over to Keegan and held her arm up holding the Life Script. "This notebook, belonged to one of the most destructive and dangerous shinigamis to our own kind and she vowed revenge when she returned from the afterlife. Who is to say…" He glanced at Keegan, "She could not be reincarnated."

Frantic murmurs and worried cries could be heard. "**Nemo**. It's **Nemo**? **Nemo** is returning?"

"Do you understand?" Kalverez hissed, letting go of Keegan's arm and passing towards Ryuk to tug on the other shinigami's arm. "And THIS is her Hellhound come to tear you to shreds!"

_**"If you continue these senseless ramblings you will suffer as she did the first time-"**_

"GO AHEAD!" Kalverez laughed morbidly. "I fear not the snares of death." He coughed. "I am on my last legs and…I would welcome the sentence greatly."

The Shinigami King's booming voice came again. _**"I should have sent the tattle-tale with her when she drained you of your life-span. Had I known you would be so loyal to her…"**_

Kalverez breathed heavily and shuffled around. "Are you lot going to continue to let this beast dictate to you how lifestyles can be lived? How DEATH is a mere way of existence?" He sneered. "Of course I do not ask you change that." He paced and shuffled, and slapped Armonia Justin Beyondormason again when he passed by him.

"Stop hitting me!"

"You were the one that would have sold them out eventually anyways…you're a coward, just like I used to be."

Ryuk snickered each time this happened.

"Humans…provide life for us…in more ways than one. Are we ever thankful for the fact that their lives take care of our own when we kill them?" He asked.

Sidoh scratched the top of his head. He never had thought about that before, and if he had it probably hadn't been much. It was humans that gave them all life after all wasn't it? Life to Death's Army. Made sense.

Ryuk too had never pondered about this. He only killed humans every once in a while and that was when something interested him. Since he'd been with Keegan, Ryuk hadn't felt that need. For several reasons, one was because he didn't gamble and two Keegan's 'no-kill' policy had rubbed off on him. He had a different sort of respect for life than he had before…he supposed.

This Kalverez seemingly had more knowledge of the notebook than either Keegan or Ryuk had and he seemed to know EXACTLY where it had come from…and how it came about.

_**"Do you know of the heresy you are committing?"**_

Keegan realized The Shinigami King was speaking to her and Ryuk again as Kalverez finished his rant, seemingly silent for the reaction.

Keegan held up the notebook again. "I didn't think it would work at first…originally. To me Ryuk was just a trouble-making spirit that had nothing better to do than harass unsuspecting people…in their homes and households." She mouthed a sorry to Ryuk and he shrugged. She was right. He liked messing with humans in that way sometimes.

"The notebook itself…" she paused, "proved me wrong. Ryuk only told me what he knew about the notebook and what it could do, he himself didn't believe it worked at first either." Keegan stared down at its black pages.

_**"And how did you come across it, Ryuk?"**_

Ryuk's expression soured. "Why didn't anyone guard it at the time if it was so fucking dangerous?"

Keegan glanced up at the darkened sky for a moment. "That's what I would like to know."

There was a very restrained silence, almost as if the Shinigami King didn't want to answer that question. Almost afraid to.

"Because he knows he didn't do it. He couldn't do it." Kalverez laughed. "He knows she'll come back if he does. The book'll tell on him." He snickered.

_**"Do not speak ill truths you lowly wretch!"**_

"How many times do I have to tell you, my existence is at its end. I have nothing to fear from you. Neither should they. As long as that nagging feeling is in the back of your mind, you'll never lay any judgment down on any human or shinigami…regardless. She'll come back and kill you like she nearly did before…you're afraid. You're afraid. AFRAID!" Kalverez cackled.

_**"I have had enough-"**_

"_I'VE _heard enough…" Keegan sneered suddenly. Eliciting a few questioned murmured from the shinigamis around them. "YEAH! You heard me. I've heard enough. This whole process is out of order. Because there is NOT order in this court. If what he says is true you're afraid of something it doesn't matter what it is. But let me tell you something right here and right now…" Keegan said, scowling. "I've looked death in the face and do you know what? It's pretty ugly, and you know what I don't know what happened." She pointed at the sky in general at the shinigami king. "If I find out it was YOU who had something to do with the death of my parents…ANY of you, my soul will seek revenge if you kill me or him." She glared and the glint in her eyes meant business.

Ryuk knew that confident stare, that death promise. Keegan was dead serious. He believed every word she said. If Keegan's soul was as bitter about death as she knew it to be then it would definitely come back to haunt the shinigami king. Reincarnation...was not entirely impossible. He'd just never seen it before.

"Don't test me…because my spirit might help bring back whatever it is Kalverez is talking about."

The elder shinigami laughed morbidly. "Sounds like the old gal to me." He flicked his tongue out at the air. "Ohh…I know that scent all too well." Drool, more of it.

"She has the initiative," He warned the shinigami king. "I would not underestimate her spirit if you ended her life."

_**"… Very well but the shinigami-"**_

_"You lay one single death sentence on Ryuk and I'll die right now to drag you to wherever I go with me so I can torture you for your crimes against both shinigamis and humanity." _Her tone fierce, her voice venomous, her eyes piercing flames of green as she gazed up at the sky. "**Don't you touch him**…"

_**"State more for your reasoning…" **_He didn't bring up the sentencing issue again for Ryuk it seemed.

"He's all I have." Keegan turned to look at the shinigami with a sad smile. "You take him away from me and I'll be sure to make you pay. You'll be sorry. I'll come back, maybe as whomever Kalverez is talking about…or maybe I'll come back as an angel to judge you for what you did to him. I dunno. I'm thinking about becoming a Buddhist after everything I've gone through with this notebook." Keegan said as she held up the Life Script again.

_**"What are you saying, exactly human?"**_

Keegan turned to Ryuk, who nodded to her and she turned back to the sky. "Simple. _**Don't. Fuck. With me." **_

That being said Kalverez wheezed in laughter. "Sounds like her, in a more modern sense." He took spoke to the sky. "I'd follow her advice. Humans, though weak in life, are strong willed in souls and hearts. I suggest that you follow what she has warned you with…and let them go."

_**"What exchange can be made in the events that have taken place?" **_The Shinigami King asked her.

"What do you want?" Ryuk asked with a growl.

There was a pause and then he answered. _**"The Book of Life has fallen into human hands of only one kind. I highly advise it not falling into more human hands. You…" **_He indicated to Keegan, _**"Must be the Keeper of the Script for the duration of your existence, even after you die though…I expect something to be done about the notebook, so it does not fall into your kind's hands-"**_

"Don't be racist, my mother wouldn't approve." Keegan said coldly. "And if she were a vengeful spirit I think she'd be proud of me for back talking 'The Devil' as she would say."

Ryuk grinned at her. "Wow, nice reference to your mom. Worried about that much?"

"Ryuk, shut up." Keegan snapped at him suddenly.

The shinigami king gave a great sigh before speaking again. _**"Then we are in agreement?"**_

"As long as you leave Ryuk alone…I think I can let this travesty slide."

"And as long as you keep your end of the bargain I won't feel the need to see if I can awaken the she-devil." Kalverez limped around before he picked up his raggedy Death Note and began shuffling off.

_**"These actions have been absolved…however, I do hope you realize what you are dealing with…"**_

As Keegan turned to link arms with Ryuk she scoffed.

"I think I can handle it." And they walked.

As Keegan stepped forward Sidoh suddenly swooped in front of her. "Wow! That was so scary, I thought for sure you were goners!"

Ryuk snarled at him, grabbing the poor bird-like shinigami and rattling him about. "Don't remind me, I'm already boggled enough. Do you WANT me to steal your Death Note, again. Slimy, sniveling little coward!"

Wow. That must have rattled Ryuk inside, otherwise he wouldn't have taken his frustrations out on Sidoh.

"Waaaaaaaaaaaah!" Poor Sidoh.

"Ryuk." He wasn't listening. "Ryuk." Still wasn't listening. "RYUK! LET HIM GO! JEEZ!"

He stopped and dropped Sidoh, he was breathing heavily and his eyes were glowing red, angrily. She took him by the arm and shook her head at him before leaning down to help Sidoh to his stance. "Sidoh, I think you'd better go…we'll…uh…hang out later, okay?" She said.

A bit traumatized by Ryuk's behavior, poor Sidoh fled and Keegan walked with Ryuk for a while. He still seemed generally shaken by everything. Perhaps from the inside until finally it had exploded out of him. They came to a place eventually where it looked like a dried grotto and all ahead all you could see nothing but desert and a bone-yard wasteland with slick oil puddles. Keegan held onto him as she stared ahead.

"You want to talk about it?" She asked him, as he had done many times before back home with her.

He turned suddenly and held her tightly. It was awkward because Ryuk was much taller but Keegan could feel it. He was…afraid. She'd never sensed that before in him. He never worried about her life being totally endangered but…this tme had been different. The fear had affected him and he was still scared. He'd been shaken, fearing the worst could have happened to her and in return she the same for him. He was cold as sin, but Keegan knew he was burning with anger on the inside.

"I could have lost you for all that shit you pulled back there." He was gnashing his teeth and Keegan felt crushed by the hug.

"…I'm sorry Ryuk. I wasn't worried about myself."

"You never worry." He said, angry.

"…I guess some things I worry about more than myself." Keegan admitted, shrugging in his arms. "I dunno."

"Your life is mine you know." Ryuk said, part of it felt like a warning and part of it was wise advice. "It's connected, because the notebook says it is. You die, I die. So even if you tried to protect me…I'd have ended up dying anyways."

What was the point in her dying for him anyways? It didn't make sense unless-

"…Were you bluffing the whole time?" Ryuk asked her, his tone flat and annoyed.

Keegan grinned. "He fell for it though didn't he? Good thing he didn't know about the last rule huh?" She pulled away from him waving the notebook.

"You know Keegan, you scare me sometimes. I often don't tell you that." He stood beside her again, his hands lingering hanging over her shoulders in a half hug.

"I dunno." She said. "Does this mean I'm stuck here in the Shinigami Realm with you, with thise notebook? Asshole up there wasn't real specific you know." Keegan said looking down at the notebook.

"Of course he wasn't specific!" Came Kalverez's laugh from behind them.

"Eh?" Ryuk turned to look back at the elder shinigami waving at them. "You…you're that cocky old bugger from the trial."

As Kalverez dragged himself closer he smacked Ryuk with his Death Note with a growl. "Don't call me old, I'm a legend." He laughed to himself. "Judging by your adventures you might as well be too."

Keegan watched this shinigami with curiosity and stepped closer. "Hey…why did you help us at the trial? I mean, from the looks of it you could have been lying about knowing about the notebook-"

"Lying? Ha! If I were lying the bastard wouldn't have let you off." Kalverez informed her. "That's what I've always hated about you humans, you and your inability to trust people." He scoffed. "No respect."

Ryuk gnashed his teeth in annoyance. "Don't you talk to her like that."

Kalverez waved his Death Note at Ryuk again before scowling. Drool went everywhere. "Yuck." Ryuk stepped back and Keegan actually felt sorry for the poor guy. He seemed unable to control it.

"That still doesn't answer the question as to why." Keegan restated. "Mind giving me some heads up?"

Kalverez looked up at her with interest. "You're not her…" A pause. "I thought…she might have finally gotten her wish."

"Her wish?" Keegan asked. "Who is she? You keep talking about someone that made the notebook…another shinigami, what happened to her?"

Kalverez grinned. "Heh. Let's just say, she sleeps…in a very deep sleep." He said before beginning to limp off. "I'm too old for this world, on my last legs." He looked over at Keegan again before he came back over. "I'd like to see it one more time before I fade away." He said.

Keegan handed him the notebook and Kalverez laughed softly at it. "Hello you old bitch." He said to The Life Script. "Hehe. Caused a lot of trouble down there. Well, as long as you're around I'll know I can rest in peace knowing you'll come back…some day. I don't know when, but when you did I expect you to either help end the world or save it." He handed the notebook back to Keegan before his knees began to shake and he growled in pain.

It felt awful…and it looked awful as Keegan watched the sight along with Ryuk. "What's happening to him?" Keegan asked.

Kalverex obviously couldn't answer, but his drool came in waves now and he groaned in pain as Ryuk gripped her shoulders and pulled her further back from the scene. "He's dying…" Surely. There was no 'mortal' way to kill a shinigami, unless it was with love. However, shinigamis also died naturally, hence why they needed to replenish their life spans by taking human lives.

That was right, shinigamis died different than humans did. To see it first hand was a little more than Ryuk thought Keegan could handle, but it wasn't as bad as Keegan thought it could be. However…

Kalverez felt his body lock up and his eyes go blank before the light left the color of his golden eyes and she watched bit by bit as Kalverez disintegrated…into dust.

That was how they died. They just…disappeared. "Eh!" Keegan said as the ashes began to blow away and she scrambled hurriedly to shield them from the winds blowing at them. "…he shouldn't have to fade away like that…and not be remembered." Keegan said, clearly upset.

She tried to pile the ashes up repeatedly and scoop them into the small purse she had brought with her before Ryuk gently placed his bony hand over hers. "Not all of it Keegan…" He said. "You can't carry a purse filled with ashes around with you. What do you think you're gonna do with it anyways?"

She felt her lower lip quiver. "He deserves some peace doesn't he?"

"He got it. He saw The Life Script before he died." Ryuk tried to reason with her.

"That's not what I meant!" Keegan exclaimed angrily, she could feel hot tears on her face as she struggled to hold them back. "He doesn't deserve to die here…" She said, her voice breaking. "He should…he should be properly buried, not forgotten about."

"…Is that what you'd have done for me Keegan? Buried me? Not forgotten about me if I died?"

Keegan glanced at him. "Of course I would!" She said, angry. "I'd never forget you…you're too important to me…you're all I have I-"

He was crouched beside her as she said through tears. "I don't want to ever forget you." She said to him. "That's what happens here. Shinigamis forget…they move on, and they don't care what happens…" She said looking at the ashes she had currently in her hands. "He didn't deserve that…and neither do you I just-"

He put his hand on her head. "Hey…"

She was sobbing then. Keegan didn't cry often but when she did it showed a more vulnerable side that Ryuk didn't like to see. Human sorrow was never a big fascination but…with Keegan, beingt he kind of human she was, it intrigued him.

"Don't cry." He assured her. "We did it." He said. "We won. It's all over, you don't haveto be upset anymore." Those large yellow eyes stared at her, not currently sure how to express the feeling inside him at that moment but what else could he do.

He pat her head and he made her stand up. "Come on. I'll take you home…We're close enough to get you down there now." Keegan sniffled with one of his gangly arms around her as they walked still.

"So…were you really serious about coming back, ya know? As an angel and wreaking hell on all shinigamis?" Ryuk looked down at her. Her hair was a bit of a mess. From traveling to the shinigami realm and the human world Keegan always seemed to be more of a mess when she ended up here. Her hair was especially frizzy today; she looked paler than what was normal for a fair-skinned Irish-American girl.

"Let me be absolutely clear here Ryuk," Keegan turned towards him, stopping for what must have been the billionth time. "I'm the type to hold a grudge."

He gave her his crooked little shinigami grin. "Yeah. I know. Better than anyone I think."

She rolled her eyes, shaking her head as they continued to walking along.

"Can I ask you something?" Keegan held her purse up to show the bag of ashes. "Are you…okay, I mean with me putting him to rest on Earth?"

Ryuk shook his head. "It's not really my business what you do with his remains Keegan, if I were him I'd be pretty damn grateful somebody had enough decency to care where I was buried."

"Did you learn your lessons about life and death pretty well then, huh?" Keegan smirked.

"Life, death, and love. Sounds like a fun novel you could write." Ryuk snickered.

"Nah…it'll come out as some cheesy novel and someone will lump it in with all that awful vampire stuff nowadays." Keegan sighed.

He stopped then as Keegan kept walking ahead before he watched her again."Hey…can I ask _YOU_ something?" Ryuk asked her.

"Yeah?" Keegan turned to face him and he approached. "You only kiss me in my human form, you tryin' tell me I'm ugly or something?"

Keegan laughed. "No! What? No…" She was laughing at the very idea of it.

Ryuk gave a light cackle. "Then why don't you kiss me now?"

"…You mean where other shinigamis could see?" Keegan asked him, looking around warily. "…Why?"

"Because…well you know." He tried to find the words. What were the words that humans used to express that sort of affection for each other? Keegan used it frequently to him all the time.

"Know what?"

"…that I love you." Ryuk said, mumbling a bit. She reached up to ruffle his hair slightly, but it was a bit harder and Ryuk had to comply with this by leaning down. Keegan was much shorter than he and Light. If Ryuk wa stall in his human form he was a lot taller as a shinigami. He chuckled. "So, I still get that kiss right? Oh wait. That's right. I'm pretty fucking hideou-"

He shut up when she yanked him towards her and suddenly…"I never wanna hear that again." She growled before kissing him deeply and his golden eyes bulged a bit more than usual as she did so before pulling away and they walked on.

He was left…speechless had she really-Oh yes she had! He watched as she turned to walk ahead of him.

"Come on asshole! Take me home already!" Keegan called out to him, turning with a smile.

With a wicked grin, Ryuk was next to her. "All right…but there's only one way back DOWN you know."

"Please don't say it…"

"Yup. If you don't fly Human Airways you gotta fly Shinigami Ways."

"Ohh…I don't wanna puke agaaaaain."

"Too bad, shit happens." Ryuk suddenly picked Keegan up when she wasn't expecting it and threw her over his shoulder.

"HEY! HEY! PUT ME DOWN!"

"Ryuk 1, you are clear for take-off." He snickered before his wings burst from his back and he disappeared from sight suddenly with Keegan.

They were gone…and all that could be heard though was Keegan yelling.

**"RYUUUUUUKKKK!"**

**"Whaaaaat?"**

**"STOP THAT!"**

**"Heh heh. 'Kay."**

**Authoress Note**: Well there you guys have it folks, the official end of the Life Script.

:3 Thanks to all you wonderful supporters of the story and to the reviewers. Remember, where there is a Kira there will always be a Kuro to combat against them. Thank youf or your continued support and sticking through 'til the very end.

Much Love,

Hatter.


End file.
